The Exorcism of Sarada Uchiha
by JeffC FTW
Summary: There is something utterly strange happening to an innocent little girl. Something beyond comprehension. Her uncle and aunt refuse to believe it is psychological, but something far more immoral in the making. Will all the help they can get remove the entity inside their niece?
1. A Picture Perfect Family

**As everyone knows, The Exorcist is considered one of the most terrifying horror movies ever made. In fact it still gives people the same shock as it did the first moment it was exposed to the world. But when I rewatched it awhile ago for the first time in awhile, never in my LIFE think I would be risky enough to adapt it for Naruto, specifically a certain family in the title...**

 **Naruto and its characters all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The Exorcist, of course, belongs to author William Peter Blatty and director William Friedkin.**

Chapter One

A Picture Perfect Family

Summer was approaching, but sometimes in Konoha, it would begin to become hotter than anticipated. Which was why some would have air conditioning, but others would just open the windows and let humid breeze come in.

And, unspoken knowledge, others would strip down to the skin their mothers gave them.

In one home - a grand suburban complex with a calming zen garden that paid homage to the simpler, olden times - there was a family with a small staff unit asleep in the early hours of the dark morning. It was a typical Monday, and the man of the house lay in bed while looking at the ceiling, his hands folded beneath his head like an extra pillow. The blanket and sheet covered his lower body, but his left leg stuck out to show hardened muscle. His broad chest heaved slightly up and down with each breath. He was one individual naked and breathing in the stuffy night.

To his right lay his wife of thirteen years. Soft chocolate hair was tied beneath her head, then braided to keep the locks from being tangled into each other. Her smooth, small back was softly glowing when there was no moonlight. It took all of his self-control to not move from his position, to not let the night revve his drive, and wake her so he could ravish her like he had done earlier when the girl across the hall had gone to bed.

To his left was the photograph of their wedding. Him and this woman whom he loved since long before the day they married. He never paid attention to the details the moment she was walking up to him with her mother and great-aunt on either side, but whenever he looked at this memento, he would soak up all the details, mostly at her: that alluring, slimming satin silhouette which showed off her curves, the train lined with exquisite lace. Blue forget-me-nots, freshly plucked from the river, adorned her head in a sweet crown. To finish was the extravagant necklace he gave her on their second year of dating.

He slid out of bed then, in that direction, swinging his legs over the bed, exposing himself only for the moment and picking up his dressing gown on the foot of the bed to pull over himself, quietly opening the door and leaving the room.

Across the hallway, as previously mentioned, was a young girl of twelve years old. Their niece who was the child they couldn't ever have. A few years after her birth, his wife suffered a tumor which had taken efforts to be removed, but before the surgery caused the miscarriage of who should have been their first child. It had been a tumultuous time for all of them - adding in the loss of this girl's mother shortly after her birth which drove the father, his own younger brother, away.

She murmured softly in her sleep, making him smile. He sat down on the side of the bed, taking in the dark hair of her father who was hardly home to be with her and the features of the mother she would never know. His niece was a star student at school, had a few close friends, and had what you could call the "perfect track record", but she was not yet thirteen. When you would hit that age, things started changing for you - for better and for worse. And you would start seeing nothing was EVER perfect.

Until then, he would just support her the way she deserved. He was her uncle, her legal guardian, and he loved her. She wouldn't suffer because her father was grieving over the death of the wife he loved so much. But next time he called, he was going to give his brother yet another lecture as it became routine; sometimes, he wanted to just have another drink after each time.

When summer would come, he planned to take her and Izumi on a fishing trip - and of course joined with Shisui, Naruto and his gang - just as soon as she was finished with her shoot in Tokyo. Tomorrow morning, she would be taking off as soon as Hinata would come and take Sarada to school. Naruto's wife loved taking her son, who was one of Sarada's friends, and his niece to school, because they were all family that didn't end in blood.

But just as he left his niece's room, Itachi furrowed his brow at the sound that he heard overhead. _Damn it - the rats are scratching again._

This had gone on for a few weeks now. Scratching as well as an odd smell - but tonight was so hot that the latter wasn't present. A few nights would just be cold that he had to turn the heater on.

If Itachi Uchiha didn't know any better, he'd say something was going on in his own house, but what nonsense!

Izumi murmured when she turned around and blinked when she saw him come back into their room. "Sarada have a nightmare?" she asked. "I would have heard."

"No. I couldn't sleep because of this damned heat." He decided to not bother her so late again about the noises. If they were rats for sure, it was nothing that Kisame and the others couldn't help with. Last time was none of them, so why would the noise keep scratching up in the attic or in the walls? He should have called the exterminator when he had the chance, but tomorrow would be the day.

She turned over onto her back and watched him let his robe slide from his body and then get into bed beside her. Her eyes sparkled, which meant one thing. She slid closer to be beside him, pushing off her side of the blankets to spoon herself with him. Breasts jiggled side to side when she crawled atop him. "Want me to make things _hotter_?" she purred, settling atop him, her lower body aligning with his and making him groan at the friction, rumbling in his throat.

"You're killing me," he said jokingly.

"Glad. I'd love to kill you this way for waking ME up in the middle of the night."

 _I'd love to kill those rats or whatever it is that just catch my ears in the middle of the night._

Itachi's arms came to wrap around her and pull her close, then rolled back over to her side, taking her with him. After over a decade, he could still indulge with her whenever they wanted, even if dryness was involved, but you still had to be careful with your wife because she could tear, and that was the last thing he wanted to happen to her. And it wasn't like they were trying too hard to have another child after they last lost their first when it was barely done with the first trimester. He had been looking forward to becoming a father; she was so excited that she'd done most of the preparations than him despite her busy schedule. Well, she picked and he purchased since he was home - but then one day during a shoot, she was bleeding and suffering tremendous pain in a rear lobe that hospitalized her immediately.

The loss of the unborn tore them both apart, but they still stuck together. He tried to assure both her and himself that it wasn't the end of the world. Sarada then was too young to understand such things, but she did catch that her uncle and aunt were devastated because they wouldn't have the cousin they'd promised for her. Hence she was sad, too. And now she was old enough to understand these things.

If they didn't have another baby, then she was all they had and ever loved. That was all he cared about. Even if her own father was too cowardly - and ought to be ashamed of himself - to even be around her after losing her mother. The least Sasuke could have done was just be there for his daughter since she was all he had!

Izumi's beautiful and sweet body washed away his thoughts, as did the sensation of his wife's pubic hair against the tip of his aching manhood. Just her magic to make him ready to go back to sleep, but not before enjoying her. Murmuring, Itachi reversed their positions and reclaimed her mouth with his just as he gently sheathed himself within her comfortable, moist warmth, her moans music to his ears.

The scratching had stopped at some point after they climaxed and fell asleep together.

~o~

What a night before she would make the trip to Tokyo!

She suspected Itachi must have heard that scratching upstairs and wouldn't tell her this time. But she wasn't mad at him; she was annoyed at that shit, too. Somehow, she was a miracle sleeper unlike him - except when he got up in the middle of the night again to check on Sarada.

 _I'll be glad the shoot is indoors rather than outside. Summer - my God, I could enjoy sitting by the pool after a day's hard work. But I could use the break when Itachi takes us all to the lake as soon as I'm done and Sarada gets out of school. And then on Friday, Itachi has the dinner planned with his colleagues, and I have to be at my best._

Izumi Uchiha looked over herself in the ruched tan dress, her long hair held back in a sleek ponytail high behind her head to show off the heart-shaped diamonds in her ears. Around her neck was the one she favored and which Sarada said was one of her favorites of Aunt Izumi's collection: stationary rose-cut diamonds between sleek crescents. And the finishing touch was on her right ring finger, which was none other than the gemstone of her favorite color; the oval amethyst was as wide as her digit, needing no more embellishment, either.

But the one thing she loved most than any of the jewels her loving husband would occasionally shower her with was what he gave her on the day they took their vows. _A bouquet of gems: a large, dazzling pear shape over smaller ones against rosy gold. Said the one who loved me more than anything that I was even more precious than this was._

Itachi spoiled both her and Sarada rotten. And it was right now that he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close and telling her how beautiful she was, kissing her cheek in the process. "I'm going to miss you in the next couple days," he breathed huskily against her neck.

"And I'm going to miss you, too." _And since I won't be here but in a hotel room, I got my special toy in place of you until I come back._ That was a curse about being human: you could get aroused at odd times for no reason, against you and your spouse's wishes. And whenever hubby would find out, he would administer "punishment" whenever Sarada would not be around. That girl didn't need to HEAR what went on in the privacy of their bedroom.

Itachi spun her around and began to gently attack her neck, making her moan. "Not sure how I am going to spend that long without you." Izumi burst into a fit of giggles; a cold shower was what he needed. Thirteen years and going even a long time without making love really stirred up the engine without much effort, didn't it?

She had to stop him, because she was going to be late waiting for the cab. He pouted rather cutely; she smirked and pecked him on the lips. "Don't worry, big boy. I'm sure Sarada can keep you busy until I come back. And speaking of which -" She had to remind him of the little present he was going to get her at the end of today, which had taken a while to acquire, and now that it was here, the last day of school was out of the question.

The lynx didn't reside anywhere in Japan, which would be strange since it prowled snowy mountains in America, Canada, and throughout much of Asia. It was considered a mythological creature of power especially with its eyes, but the simple appearance of this necklace was befitting for a twelve-year-old: the polished moon-like stone was framed with little crystals on a sturdy black leather necklace accented with silver. In a way, she would have eyes on her already, since Sarada was clearly going to grow up to be an Uchiha beauty.

Izumi had to hold back her tears at the thought while Itachi was struggling to not see the girl was maturing a bit too fast while still being that loving little one they raised since her mother died and her father all but avoided as much contact as possible.

 **I wanted to just establish much of the Uchiha family (notably these three) as I could without putting everything in at once. What I did with Sasuke and his daughter was similar to my own relationship with my father, but he didn't purposefully avoid me like in here. Although today, we still don't have a close relationship. :(**

 **Reviews appreciated. Flames are NOT allowed.**


	2. Rats in the Walls?

**Sorry to keep you guys waiting. I just did a new chapter for "A Fragile Blue Rose" (final in the Konoha Kaidan Trilogy) with one more to go. :D**

 **Of course, since this story is based off the movie, I have been debating what to include and what not to include. Because after all, shock is shock, though this content isn't for the fainthearted.**

 **Oh and thank you so much for the support in the last chapter, especially the one who replied to me and my father's ordeal. Long story short: he's retired from the army, for five years now, but before then, he's been an alcoholic ever since he joined them. They say sometimes it changes a person for better or worse - and I may have fallen into the latter category. :(**

 **Last April he was diagnosed with liver cancer, was ordered to STOP drinking, and he did for five months until now. He's putting himself in an early grave, doesn't care how it affects us (me and Grandma, his mother). :'(**

 **Right now, we're trying to enjoy the peace while it lasts.**

Chapter Two

Rats in the Walls?

He enjoyed his mornings - most of the time - because they were always warm and peaceful. If there would be any trouble, it was in the afternoon until early evening when he wanted nothing but relaxation from then on. He said good morning to the kitchen staff until he found the one he was looking for.

"Last night, there was scratching again, Kisame," he said as he helped himself to his steaming beverage at the table by the bright alcove which showed the gardens and all the privacy needed. Sarada was long since gone. "But if it isn't rats, then I damned well don't know what we can do!"

"You have me there," his friend and head of the household replied as he joined him just as the other servants were getting to work. "I left all the traps I could myself, Itachi, but none of them snapped, and bait was left exactly as I placed them." He shook his head.

Kisame Hoshigaki had once been a member of the special services, but after having his face scarred to make it appear like a shark, he retired after ten years and settled down to find service in the Uchiha household, because he was a family friend since Itachi and his brother were children. As far as he was concerned, this was all the business and pleasure in one he needed.

Itachi himself was a stay-at-home consultant who ran his own firm; not only was the income his wife made for them included, but what his father left was enough to help him and his family get by. Sasuke had his own, but he was otherwise stationed wherever he was ordered, though when he _was_ home, he would not bother to come to the house. There were times Itachi tried seeking him out for his daughter's birthday, for Christmas even, only to hear from his buddies - including Naruto who also wasn't home much, but he would always go to his family - that Sasuke would often disappear, and they wouldn't know where he was.

Seated at his desk within his personal office, he called the exterminator to come by and take a look into the wall system. If there weren't rats, it could be insects, that was all.

But what kind of BUGS scurried in the early hours of the morning?

The gentleman whose name was Takuetsu promised he would be here tomorrow morning. In the meantime, he had his table full of memos written as well as the phone blown up with clients asking for advice on how to make it work. He would arrive before the afternoon hour would strike. And in the meantime, when the day was ending...

His niece - his pretty, spectacled and growing so fast little niece - came home and with something else in her backpack besides her homework, but she waited to show him until after dinner. A dinner he slaved away to make, consisting of miso ramen, grilled fish and then dango. And what it was turned out to be a shocker that was reserved for other children who had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

"Sarada Uchiha, where on earth and WHO did you get this from?!"

What she had was none other than an _Ouija board_ \- a seemingly innocent gameboard, but it harbored a dark secret: communication with the dead. "Boruto borrowed it from a friend of his at school. He did it before and with his mom, then let me borrow so I can use it with you. Said they did it once to communicate with Neji, his and Himawari's uncle who died before she was born. They actually TALKED to him!" Her eyes flashed excitedly, also pleading with him to try it.

Itachi did not approve of what she was implying: she wanted to use it to attempt to communicate with her mother who died after birthing her.

"No."

Her face fell. "Why not?"

"Because it's dangerous. Surely you've heard the rules?"

"Yes, Boruto explained them. But nothing terrible happened. At least he would have told me if it did. I know you shouldn't goad, so to speak, no asking when you'll die, don't use it alone, be in the dark and devoid of background noises, say good-bye when you're done."

Itachi motioned for her to come around the table to stand beside him. When she did, she laid down the board before their eyes. "There is more to it. No usage within burial grounds, or in the place the person you are in contact with died." _I remember Sasuke bringing it home, saying Naruto let him borrow. These days, the need to talk to deceased loved ones..._

But there was also Sarada being sad and desperate, because she never knew her mother and sometimes thought her father purposefully didn't want her based on what she accidentally heard her uncle once say over the phone. "It was never your fault," he would say, sometimes only doing so much.

Now she brought this thing home so that they could try and contact Sakura. It wasn't like she died in THIS house, but Itachi still didn't have a good feeling about this. "If you want to, then let me be here, and if any of the warnings happen, we cut it off," he said sternly. He didn't believe in the supernatural, unlike his wife whose family was more devout than his, but rules were rules.

Giddy, Sarada sat down and positioned the planchette in the middle of the damned thing, and said with her eyes closed, "M-Mama -?"

"No, wait!" Quickly, Itachi put his hand on the thing. "Go on."

"Mama, is it you?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

The microscopic thing began to move - _I'm not even moving it myself, and neither is she!_ \- going to the top left... **YES.**

Itachi felt like the breath had been knocked out of his lungs. _S-Sakura..._

Suddenly, it felt like he suddenly _sensed_ the presence - if she was here. He remembered the times he could have sworn she would still be here, only to find no one there. Izumi would say the same. And Sasuke, grieving widower, never once talked about it, but he mentioned a few times seeing her in his sleep. Seldom did he have a night's rest since then. "What's my name?" the girl went on, pressing excitedly, and then the letters began to spell out.

 **S. A. R. A. D. A.**

She'd spelled her daughter's name! But how would you explain the cold shiver up Itachi's spine? "What is _your_ name?" he questioned, treading carefully and hoping he didn't sound too offensive. If this unseen force spelled out what he was thinking about, then he was going to end it here and now - but nothing of the sort happened.

 **S. A. K. U. R. A. I. T. A .C. H. I.** \- all coming down to the message: _Sakura, Itachi._ He gasped sharply; she had said his name right after hers!

"It's really her, Uncle!" Sarada said happily, taking off her glasses to rub her eyes with one hand, keeping the other on the planchette, and wiping tears she didn't want to fall.

Itachi gazed upon the black, ancient letters painted on modern cardboard, feeling something light in himself...though he wasn't going to take things lightly based on the strings in his heart tugging.

~o~

About time the shoot was over! Now she could catch a short flight and then go home. _And get ready for Itachi's dinner._

One of the best dresses in sleeked black topped with a dramatic lace overlay, almost like a cape - it was one of the newest trends. And after it was over, she found herself as well as her fellow line-up girls being blinded by paparazzi cameras as well as fans who wanted their autographs. It was fun, but also exhausting. She was glad to be home.

"Hello, Auntie is home!" she called. But it wasn't her niece to answer first; her husband answered back that he was in the kitchen. He was finishing up some paperwork, which made her click her tongue. She swore he worked himself much harder than she did with herself, which she sometimes scolded him for, but Uchiha were natural workaholics that required someone to keep them on their feet.

And just like that, the little terror herself arrived, coming around to attack her from behind, wrapping her arms around Izumi's waist. "Summer!" she said happily, still sweet and innocent as ever before she was even a teenager. "Auntie, fishing trip! Right, Uncle?!" It was then that she let go and sneezed, but not before covering her mouth.

"Oh, gods!" Izumi quickly pulled out a couple tissues from her purse and gave them to the girl, before pulling out the small bottle of sanitizer she made sure to have on hand. _You'd better not be coming down with a cold or flu on your first day of summer!_

"I'm fine," Sarada said after wiping her hands clean and tossing the tissues into the trash. "Just a sneeze...though when the day was almost over, I felt sick and suddenly hungry."

"Well, how about we all go out now and treat you to something that will make you feel a little better?" Itachi said, standing up and putting his pen down. "Dango for all of us!"

Their niece clapped her hands in affirmative, jumping up and down.

~o~

The best days of her life were when Uncle Itachi took her and Aunt Izumi for sweet dumplings. He always did it for birthdays, for holidays, and special days when she would bring back good grades from school.

Last day of school: she brought back a report card with solid highs across the charts. And her boys were a mixed result, in the sense Mitsuki was near the same as her, but Boruto was average at best. That idiot - it made her wonder how he could be the son of her father's best friend. Thinking about her dad whom she hardly saw in her life made her fall inside, especially when Boruto asked her if he was coming home while they were all on summer vacation.

"Who cares," would always be her answer.

From what her aunt and uncle told her, her mother died after she was born, and her father was so distraught that he got away to deal with his burdens on his own. They both said he loved her, but he was dealing with it in his own way. Except Sarada had a hard time believing that. If Sasuke loved her, why didn't he stay in her life just like Itachi and Izumi?!

Her guardians said he was also fighting with other men and women to make sure their country was safe; so, in a small way, she was glad that he was protecting her along with everyone else.

Sakura Uchiha - the picture was still in the house so that her only daughter would see her face. Actually, there was more than just that one. But for Sasuke to look at her face in mementos added to his absence. She was filled with so much life, Sarada was told, and it showed in her bright smile, the pink hair and vivid green eyes - she looked like the flower she was named after. She was the opposite of her husband, but they loved each other very much.

Aunt Izumi sat her down for this. "Sometimes when you lose someone you love, it just tears you apart and you don't know what to do anymore. It's easy to close off, but it takes a stronger person to make things right, to fix what was broken. Death brings some together, but it also separates them." She was really sad, just like the time she, too, lost her father when she was a little girl. That time, she and her mother were closer than ever.

This Sarada didn't understand, although it was going to take time to make more sense. As far as she was concerned, family was family. And it made her happy to know the mother she never knew wouldn't have wanted THIS happening between her husband and daughter. _I got Uncle and Auntie when Dad isn't here. They gave me everything I wanted._

Though, they were heartbroken over the baby they lost when she was too young to understand. Was having a cousin going to be the same as having a brother or sister? Boruto had Himawari, but Sarada decided being an only child was enough. That meant all the attention she had.

Speaking of Boruto, he gave her the ghost board to let her borrow and play with Uncle Itachi while her aunt was away in Tokyo for the next couple days.

Except when he laid his eyes on it, he vehemently insisted she not play it because of how dangerous it could be. But Boruto said he contacted his uncle on his mother's side, and nothing terrible happened. What was the harm in HER wanting to communicate with her dead mother if it was possible?

She and Itachi lucked out when SAKURA replied, before he insisted they end the channel to be safe. "Tomorrow, you take it back to your friend, and that's final," he'd said firmly, and his word was law. That was one thing that scared her about the man who raised her when his younger brother never did. In fact, anyone who saw Itachi Uchiha cold and commanding would freeze in their tracks and dare not say no.

Her uncle kept it locked away in his study, in a place that she wouldn't find it, and it was when Hinata would come by to pick her up that she had to give it to the woman who was sympathetic but otherwise agreed with what Itachi said.

 _Still...it was worth talking to Mom and knowing she was there._

There was also a problem: the scratching in the walls which had gone on for a while now, and they sometimes scared her - but not too much? She tried to say it to herself, but her spine would tingle. Uncle promised her it could just be rats, and that the exterminator would handle it if there was. Or bugs.

Except during the day, Sarada felt herself sneeze a fair few times, wondering if she got herself the allergies of the season or the start of a cold, and that scared her. Uncle Itachi had planned a fishing trip with her and Aunt Izumi, Uncles Naruto and Shisui as well as a few of their friends. She didn't want it to be cancelled if she was sick.

When she got back on this last day with her perfect report card in hand, thanked Hinata and said bye for now to Boruto, she ran up to the house to show her uncle, and it was this day Izumi came home, tired but glad to be home. Sarada had time to hug her before sneezing and coughing again.

Now she was hungry, and what better than dango treated by Uncle?

Sweets always made her feel better, so she was excited. "Oh, before we go out there, at least let me get settled back into this house," Izumi said, but her husband laughed and picked her up like it was their wedding day.

"Not just yet, dearest. You're going with us first so that we can get something sweet in our stomachs, because some of us earned it - and some of us need to feel better." He winked down at Sarada who blushed pink.

They were at the tea shop in no time, and it was there that they ran into none other than Naruto who had just gotten home that day. Sarada was so happy to see him that she ran and hugged him around the waist, after he'd placed his order to take home to surprise his family. "Oh, there's my girl!" he said happily, returning the hug. "And hi, Itachi, Izumi."

"Naruto, you're back," Itachi answered, pleased, but then it vanished. "I take it my brother is also home." The mention of Sasuke made Izumi scowl, too, and Sarada backed away by a few steps. She wasn't sure she wanted to see her father, even though she wished she could do something to get him to stay home for good...

And Naruto was grim, of course. "Yeah, but I haven't seen him since we landed. Hinata came after she dropped the kids - and you, Sarada - off at school, so here I am. I tried to get Sasuke to ride with us, but he took a cab and said he would be around until he couldn't take it anymore."

Something in Sarada cracked, but she tried not to cry. Something dark inside was swelling that her young mind couldn't comprehend. _That makes me think Dad doesn't want me, after all. If that's true, why would he bother existing?!_

"Sarada, sweetie, go sit down and wait with Auntie," Itachi told her, disappointing the girl and aggravating his wife who agreed and led Sarada to the furthest table, but the latter managed to hear what her uncle bitterly muttered to Naruto. "If I see my foolish brother, I'm going to sit him down and make him see what he's been missing. His daughter is getting old enough to not feel she needs him anymore, and sooner or later, he is going to regret it."

 **Takuetsu (the exterminator) was named for the masseur character in Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan.**

 **So, doing the Ouija board moment - of course for those who know the movie, the girl did it alone and that resulted in the possession. :O Though Sarada wasn't alone...but does that change a thing?**

 **Obviously not.**

 **One of the signs of demonic possession is obviously the sensing of a possible presence. Mostly it could be the belief it is a deceased loved one.**

 **Review please. :D**


	3. He's Gonna Die

**So sorry it took so long. Had to do the next of "The Gutsy Jinchuuriki". Now things start to take a turn for the abnormal...ye been warned.**

 **This was hard to do, even though I could manage, because of what I said in the warning.**

Chapter Three

He's Gonna Die

Thankfully, the scratching stopped, but when Takuetsu came by, he'd said that there was nothing of the sort. Which baffled all of them. _If there's no pests, what the hell was that?_

That part over, there was another issue much bigger than that, and it was none other than her bastard brother-in-law whom Naruto said had come home with him but refused to ride with him when Hinata came to get him, after the kids were left at school. It took all of Izumi's efforts to not curse when she saw her niece's face as she took the girl to sit down with her while Itachi spoke to Naruto and then ordered at the counter.

Oh, she heard what he said exactly if he ever saw his brother, but to look at Sarada as she seemed to have negative thoughts... "Do you really not want to see him if we -?" she asked carefully, getting a brusque shake of the head.

"No."

Sad, Izumi understood why. That meant the girl didn't want her own father because she was old enough to project more than she should have. Sasuke could have stayed with them if he wanted to, but he was too wrapped up in his own feelings. Which was why she told her husband one day that they were both more deserving to be Sarada's parents than Sasuke was. "If you want, when we go out to the lake, we won't invite him if we see him." Sarada's eyes lit up and she nodded, though the irises were shining more with tears than joy, causing Izumi's heart to break.

Itachi came to join them eventually. "I'm sorry," he said to Sarada, reaching across to take her hand into his.

"It's okay," she answered, lowering her eyes. "I don't want to see him."

He sighed. "I know. But rest assured, you won't have to deal with him. I'll do that for you," he said with a pained smile. He cleared his throat then, changing the subject. "So, she'll have it in less than half an hour..."

And right on schedule: the tri-colored, white dipped with soy, and green tea flavors all on assortment. Sarada was happy to dig in more than they were - but after a stick and onto the second of the tri, her face looked like it was turning green, warning she was getting sick. That could mean one thing. "Sarada, are you sure you're not sick?" Izumi asked, concerned.

"I was just wondering that just now," Itachi said, and that was when his mobile started ringing. Grunting, he reached into his pocket to take it out, and when he saw the name, he hissed. "It's my brother." With that, he stood up and answered it only to start barking as he stepped outside.

"About damned time you responded, foolish brother! Your daughter has just finished school, Naruto tells me you don't come even to see her -"

It was good timing that he was outside because of the range of profanity he was spewing without a care in the world until his throat was sore later, and Izumi sighed, shaking her head. She hardly ever saw him _this_ mad. "Oh, God," was all she could say because of knowing the effect this was having on the poor child in front of her who was getting up and walking in the direction of the women's restroom.

"Sorry, Auntie."

It was hard to tell if she meant the fact she was possibly sick or because her father blamed her for her mother's death. Izumi Uchiha could not think of which was worse, but the latter was so not true!

~o~

Cursing his brother on the phone with people passing by, Sasuke saying he was sorry but couldn't see his own child without a reason? And not even budging when he was informed Naruto, his best friend, had told him _everything_? That more than earned Itachi threatening to have full custody after all these years if his brother continued to keep this up. They would have to go to the law office for this, and when Sasuke heard the threat, he exploded.

 _"You honestly intend to take my child from me - a child I haven't seen much since she was born?"_

"Because you chose that on your own, Sasuke!" Itachi countered heatedly. "Why should you care, if you intend to just say yes without a fight? If you loved her that much, you should let someone else give her what you can't, since you obviously refuse to have it in yourself to honor Sakura's wish!"

There was a pause before he heard a harsh hissing of breath at the mention of his late wife's name and the fact it had been used against him. _"How DARE you say her name."_

"I say it because she damned well would be ashamed of you if she saw this," Itachi answered, looking over his shoulder and seeing Izumi through the glass, at her enraged but sympathetic glance and Sarada's back to the door. He had to go back in soon, so he ended the call coldly. "If I ever see you, I'll make you see what you've missed, and you're not going to like it." He hung up without listening to the younger's reply.

When he went back in, Sarada said she didn't want to see her father again, and he had no words to console, but then she got sick after a stick and a half, which meant that the remainders had to be brought home. Only this could rationalize that it was a bug she'd contracted. Something sweet hadn't worked, after all.

That night apparently got all the more bizarre when it was barely midnight, and she awoke them both with an odd explanation as to why she wanted to sleep with them. "My bed was shaking," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes and putting her glasses back on. "I can't get to sleep."

Itachi did the job of getting up for his girls and going to check. That was when he heard the noises, and it wasn't even scratching - it was _thumping._ Scraping, like furniture being moved around. But he didn't go for her bedroom right away; he made way for the attic, picking up a flashlight from the hallway table.

That was when he saw all the antiques of family history, as well as the traps Kisame laid out. All untouched and the pieces of cheese in place. Those damned noises again! But why didn't he see where they were coming from exactly?

 _No rats. That's just perfect! Takuetsu was right, but then Kisame double checks, and I see it all on my own._

Something at the back of his mind tweaked a warning sign based on that time Sarada brought the damned ghost board, but he brushed it back because this had gone on long before that infernal thing - except...

This was all nonsense. Who believed in this stuff anymore?

Come Friday night, it got no better when it should have, because of two reasons. It was an event where he arranged to have some of his closest colleagues and friends, to dress their best - but as far as he was concerned, the best was none other than his wife in her stunning, draping red dress and the necklace he gave her on their anniversary: brilliant pear-shaped diamonds stationary and surrounded with small rounds, the solo hanging at the end. Even after their wedding day, she would always wear this to any special occasion. Izumi was a model; she could have anything of her choosing, but this was one she would always show the cameras when the sky was a limit.

Sarada was upstairs in her room. She could have had a friend over, but she was getting sicker each day. This was the second day; he was considering calling off the trip until she was well again. The men would understand. "How is she?" he asked Izumi when she came down the stairs after putting the ailing preteen down for the night, and giving her something that would help her sleep easier.

"She's...content for now," she answered with a small smile. "Can we go back down and entertain our guests, honey?"

And how nice it was to mingle with their friends; Naruto and his wife were there while their children were with their Aunt Hanabi, Hinata's younger sister. There was also Shisui who asked how his niece was, to which Itachi replied that she would be taken to the hospital if things got worse. That was going to be on Sunday, with Dr. Yakushi to look over her. Not only was he a skilled surgeon and mental health specialist, but he was also first in pediatric medicine.

Sake was poured, sushi served as well as a cuisine provided by the finest gourmet of Konoha that the upper-class could afford.

The highlight: Shisui provided the entertainment at the piano with a song that they'd played together as children taking music class, turning it into a joyful melody that threatened to even wake the children, but what Izumi gave Sarada would have her out for the rest of the night - or so he thought.

"Itachi," Kisame said when he found him and led him away from the festivity that was leaving the excitement in his bones for more...and then it was over when his butler told him that there was an uninvited guest who wanted to talk to him in the kitchen. When he saw who it was - helping himself to a glass of champagne even - Itachi clenched his fists.

"I don't recall inviting you, little brother."

"Of course you didn't," Sasuke answered when he turned around and fixed him with a cool expression the elder matched. "I'm not planning to stay long."

"Then get it over with," Izumi said angrily as she came to join him, folding her arms across her chest. "And then leave before someone sees you - especially Naruto and Hinata. No one would enjoy you being here after all the shit you pulled."

He glared at her and sniffed. "Then I'll straight up say that if I say yes to the both of you having her, I'll agree to voluntary visitation rights. Because after all, she deserves the best, and I was never the one to give it to her," he said, face softening, and everything had gone still in the entire room.

Earlier, he swore at his younger sibling for his mistreatment of his only child all her life, avoiding her, saying there were things to do on important events like her birthday and the holidays, and here he was uninvited because Itachi thought he deserved it. He thought he could come here and just say he would agree to visitation rights, and everything would be fine?!

"You think you can -" Itachi started only to be interrupted by his wife putting her hand on his shoulder at the same time another voice entered the room, and it was one you would never expect. No one had HEARD the person come in because they walked on bare feet.

"Father." Not _Dad_ or _Papa,_ but the formality of the man who sired her but hadn't given her what he and her aunt did. She stood there in her sleeveless amethyst plaid pajamas, face blank and devoid of her glasses.

His face had before always been devoid of expression, being in her presence for a few moments or even a few days, and seeing this tender look on his mask, Itachi for a moment considered thinking his foolish younger brother meant his word, but his daughter believed something else entirely. "You're pathetic...coming here," she said tightly.

Izumi gasped, swallowing it down. On his part, all he could think of was this: _Sarada, you -!_ And her father was all the rage. "What did you say? Sarada, I'm still your father no matter you hating me. You have no right saying that to my face."

Her words were blank, though dripping with poison. "You're right...just like it was your right to leave a child from the woman you loved, blaming that child? Blame her for your own problems? For your...lack of compensation?"

Behind them, the party goers burst out into laughter - or rather, shock and then laughter at the last part, seeing a little girl talk back to the father who never willingly involved himself in her life, and to top it off: insult his manhood in a subtle way...but also used a word bigger than herself. Where had she learned the word compensation? He was supposed to be impressed, but he didn't have time to congratulate her and tell her he was pleased. Instead, Sasuke's eyes bulged nearly out of his sockets before they narrowed, his lip curled, and he advanced on her with his hand raised in preparation to slap her -

\- only for Izumi to come up and do the job just to him, leaving behind a red hand print in its wake.

Itachi chose to act fast before this got all the more out of hand. "Izumi, get her upstairs and clean her up!" he shouted, pissed beyond belief, then calmed down enough to turn back to Shisui, Kisame and the others. "I'm terribly sorry about all of this; she's just been sick and doesn't know what she's doing." His wife nodded as she took the girl by her shoulders and whisked her away from sight. He turned his cold attention back to his brother who was rubbing his burning cheek. "And you, foolish brother, get out of my house. We'll talk on Sunday."

There was the fading stench in his nostrils, telling him poor Sarada had an accident, which was probably caused by her father on the verge of striking her for humiliating him.

~o~

"He's gonna...die..."

Izumi could not remember the last time her niece had done something so shocking. Especially nothing like THIS. Never had Sarada ever said such horrible things to her father's face, nor in front of other people - especially with her and Itachi present. _Nor has she been capable of saying them to_ us, _either_.

And just now, she hinted someone was going to die, while she bathed the girl like she used to when she was little. Her dirty PJs were going to be replaced by a loose, cotton nightgown. "Why would you say those things, Sarada?" she asked softly. "And just now?"

"...I don't know." She sounded almost miserable, then tilted her head upwards to look at her timidly in the eyes. "Auntie...what's wrong with me?"

Guilty, Izumi had no answers. Although: "We'll take you to the doctor Sunday, and we will find out. I promise." With that, she leaned down and placed a kiss on her brow before leaving her alone for the night. She felt so tired herself. It was supposed to be a fun night, but then her asshole brother-in-law arrived and ruined it all, and now this...

"Everything okay?" Itachi asked when he came up to join her. Sighing, she looked up, seeing his equally exhausted expression. He nodded mutely.

 _At least on Sunday, we'll hear what the doctor has to say._

 **Oh, man, family drama, but that's not the worst of it, obviously. Stay tuned. Step by step with all this...**

 **Review. :)**


	4. What is Wrong With Her?

**I'd returned to "Allure of Darkness", a long-enough-hiatus of a fic (by five months to be exact, and that's more than a record broken for me) which includes vamp!Itachi and an OC of mine, and that means that and this story will be for the Halloween month. :D**

 **Be warned there is swearing in here, but did I have to remind for those who know the movie?**

Chapter Four

What is Wrong With Her?

He never thought that if his brother had come, it would escalate to anything like this. He meant it when he said he would make Sasuke see what he missed, but THIS?!

And Sarada - what had gotten into her to say such things? Who did she mean by "he's gonna die"?

Izumi told him this when they laid in bed, side by side, looking up at the ceiling that night. "What could be wrong with her?" she asked. "It can't just be Sasuke..." Disappointed by the lack of answers, Itachi shook his head, but he was even more disappointed in his brother. For his actions tonight and long before that. Did he really think his own daughter would just welcome him with opened arms as he came uninvited?

So, that day he was at home, he waited for Sasuke to come so that they could discuss. Izumi took Sarada to the hospital, and part of him was worried. He tried not to, because Itachi Uchiha didn't show his worries or even let them take over.

Doorbell rang just as he was getting the brandy ready, since they were going to need the load of it. He stood up when his brother walked into the sitting room. "Sasuke."

"Itachi," the younger answered. This was their greeting perhaps for the rest of their lives if nothing would be resolved. But maybe that could change even if nothing would be what it used to be. "Where are the girls?"

He didn't approve of the casual way Sasuke spoke of his estranged daughter, because what right did he have? "Izumi took her to see Kabuto," Itachi answered.

There was a small amount of concern on his younger sibling's face. "...is she getting worse?" he asked, sitting down across the elder who picked up the decanter and began to pour.

"Looks like it. I pray that it's nothing that can't be fixed. Imagine what would happen if something befell on your child," Itachi said venomously, taking a sip from his glass, but Sasuke didn't yet do it. His face had turned ashen as if he'd seen a ghost.

And it looked like the old-fashioned guilt-trip did the trick. "So, what do you have now to say for yourself since today is just the two of us?"

Of course, the response was what he expected. "Sometimes I have these thoughts," Sasuke answered, finally taking a sip and swallowing. "Thoughts that if Sarada wasn't born, then Sakura would still be alive, that she'd be here with us..."

It was then and there that Itachi snapped and went on the greatest tirade he'd ever been on in his life. "You can't blame her because of what happened," he interrupted, "nor can you blame her for something that was not her fault! Sakura had known the risk in carrying the child, but she insisted on following through, knowing she wanted this baby more than anything, and this is how you repay her wish by neglecting the very gift she left behind for you. Izumi and I wish we could've had what you had, but nothing changes how much we love our niece; she means the world, and both of us would gladly give our lives if something were to happen." He paused to take a heavier drink that left his throat burning and his voice hoarse to his ears.

"Every child is born into this world, whether having a good life or bad, but every moment is precious, and what you did - you scarred her, you left her without a father who could've been there to raise her, to share the things to bond with her over her mother. Yes, it's hard to imagine, but it sometimes heals the soul when you are with people that are a link to them. Do you understand what I'm saying, little brother; do you see now what you tossed aside?"

~o~

Sarada was in there having her examination as well as getting her shot. Who knew what was being done to her in there. Izumi was really worried and couldn't help herself. She refrained from biting her nails, settling on fidgeting with the amethyst around her finger.

She might have been waiting for close to an hour and a half when she was asked to come into the doctor's office. Gray hair pulled into a small ponytail, glasses too wide but otherwise helpful for his sight, Kabuto Yakushi smiled at her as he waited by the door and closed it behind him as soon as she was inside. "Sorry that your husband couldn't be here to listen with you, Mrs. Uchiha," he said regretfully, sitting back behind his desk. He shrugged off his white lab coat and hung it behind himself.

"We don't know exactly yet, but it looks like broken nerves. Often seen in adolescence or early childhood, sometimes runs in families. She's showing all the symptoms: hyperactivity, vomiting, agitation, and affected concentration." He was writing all of this down. "I'm going to write down the medication she is to take to calm down the nausea and everything, and you should have it ready for pick up in a few days. It's also going to stimulate so that she'll sleep better at night." He put his pen down and tore the paper off the pad to give to her.

Izumi was shocked by all of this. Sarada might have something akin to _encephalitis_ , which inflamed the brain nerves, but how could she show this now when she was only twelve years old? _But he also said it happens in families. No one in my family had that, and Itachi hasn't yet exhibited. Sasuke had it once when he was older than his daughter is now._

"Her condition isn't exactly as it seems," Kabuto told her, which calmed her down just a little bit. "Because no one knows what causes hyper-kinetic behavior in a child. Stimulants are effective and helpful to an extent. Symptoms can also be...overreaction to depression, which is in my field, but even a great mind like myself can hit a wall and need all the help I can get."

"But my niece can't be depressed," Izumi insisted. "Angry because of her father, yes, but she's functioned well. She always talks to us, too." But if he was right, then would that mean she and Itachi would have to take her to another doctor - a psychiatrist?

But Kabuto shook his head, laughing a little. "No, I wouldn't recommend that just yet. I say we see what happens first. Give at least two or three weeks."

Okay, that was reasonable, but that also left something else: the girl's bed shaking. When she asked this of the man, Kabuto frowned, brows creasing as the sign. "Well, have you ever known your niece to...swear?" he asked.

"S-swear?" she repeated. "No, but on Friday when her father came, she said some things, but cursing wasn't one of them."

"Hm," he said, nodding. "That's interesting. You see, she let loose quite a string of obscenities while I was examining her."

Could she be even more shocked? "I find that hard to believe!" she exclaimed, demanding to know what Sarada would say. This was so unlike her, if she hadn't said it enough.

And Kabuto looked uneasy talking about it, when he said the vocabulary was rather extensive. Damn it, she wanted an example, that was all! So, he relented hesitantly and took a deep breath, answering in a steady heartbeat, his face clearly turning pink as he couldn't believe a little girl who hadn't yet become a teenager would just go and say such things to his face.

"Specifically, Izumi, she advised me to...keep my fingers away from her goddamned -"

The word he spoke which _Sarada_ had used was the one which spelled C. U. Next Tuesday.

Slapping a hand over her mouth, Izumi tried to fight back the painful throbbing in her throat and her heart breaking into small cracks. "I...I can't believe it," she croaked. "I don't understand why she would do this now. I don't even know where she heard that word. That's a word my mother hated herself."

Kabuto agreed with her. "I understand. Although, I still say that the psychiatrist idea be put on hold for now so that we see what happens. It's always too early to tell, but this is also something we can fix," he assured her with a kind smile that also insisted she try not to worry.

But she was far from reassured.

 _How am I going to tell all of this to Itachi?_

~o~

Kabuto said it looked like brain inflammation, but it was too early to tell, and the only way to keep her stable for now was to be on stimulants that would help her sleep as well as to calm her down. At least some good news came out of it, but there was the chance it wasn't as it appeared.

Could this day just get any worse than it already was?

Sarada was so tired by the time they got back to the house, so she went right to bed and slept much of the afternoon. Or it looked like she would be clunked out the rest of the day and night. "We'll just have you take your pills the way the doctor told you, and everything will be fine," Izumi assured her, but he heard the doubt in her voice.

"What else did Kabuto say?" he asked as soon as the girl was gone, probably going to change herself. He planned to have the porridge brought up, which was being prepared at the moment in the kitchen.

She sat down, clearly shaken as she got it out, but when it ended with a certain word she hadn't been present to hear their niece speak, Itachi bit his tongue so hard he thought he tasted blood. "Where did she -?" he started only for her to interrupt him with a hand to his face.

"That's what I said. I don't even know, but I know Sarada isn't like that. Kabuto thinks it's depression, but we know better." She huffed. "I don't like waiting around to see what happens, but what choice do we have?"

He begrudgingly agreed with her, though got to thinking: _what if this is a mental change, after all? I don't want to think of her turning into someone else because of her father...or perhaps if we could bring them together somehow, then he can talk to her._ His wife smiled when he suggested it, but she wasn't going to just step out of the way if she heard her brother-in-law say something that put him out of line.

Later that night, they were laying down for bed and just thinking about "engaging" when they heard the noise, and it was a different kind altogether: Sarada was screaming.

"UNCLE! AUNTIE!"

There was loud thumping, as well. In a flash, they were out of bed and racing for their niece's bedroom, Itachi throwing the door open himself -

\- only to see something that existed only in a magic show, but there were no cheap tricks. _Oh, my God, the bed is SHAKING!_ And with Sarada atop it; she hadn't been making it up, after all! "OH, GOD!" Izumi shrieked, doing the honors of diving atop, trying to stop it herself, and Itachi decided to follow her.

Some time passed before the tremors and side flips ceased, and the room was silent as a ghost, right when the flickering light bulbs returned to normal. The only sounds heard were his own heartbeat as well as the breathing from him and his girls. Sarada and Izumi sat upright while he remained on his stomach, watching them. The girl was crying hysterically, clutching onto her aunt for dear life.

"What's...happening?" she moaned, subsiding into more hiccups and whimpers. Izumi shushed her and massaged her back in small circles. Itachi got up and crawled back over to them, taking them into his arms just as Kisame and the others were coming in.

Later that week, she was back at the hospital, this time for further examination despite him and his wife pleading their cases to Dr. Yakushi. This occurred as a screaming and fitful Sarada was being strapped down; the scene was witnessed through a glass window. She even cursed, calling them all bastards and bitches with the F-bomb before it.

Itachi's heart clenched with the cold grip of fear. He then looked up along with his wife and the doctor to see his brother running up to them. "I came as soon as I got your call, _nii-san_ ," he rushed, running his hand through his hair, ignoring Izumi's cold glare completely. "How is she?" He looked to his left and saw her, thrashing and swearing. The sight made him flinch.

"That is NOT Sarada in there," Izumi said, "even though I want to deny it. None of us taught her to behave like that, and she's never been around bad influences - except yourself." He scowled at her but said nothing, and Itachi held up both his hands to calm them down before returning his attention back to Kabuto.

"Well, the most common symptom we do have here is the disruption of the chemical activity in the brain. It's showing definitely - in the temporal lobe." _Which processes the senses, memory, language and the emotions._ "It's rare, but it also causes bizarre hallucinations, usually just before a convulsion...like shaking of the bed."

What the hell was he saying, that Sarada _imagined_ it?! He sure as hell did not imagine it; hell, his wife was there, too! They all jumped on the damned thing, and it would have turned them all over! But why would the doctor, one of their friends if not the closest, just continue to believe it was the brain of their niece - and Sasuke's daughter - if not her BED?!

"Then what the hell causes it?" Izumi hissed.

"Lesion...primarily in the temporal lobe. A kind of seizure disorder."

"Then explain how her whole personality could change," Itachi demanded, Sasuke remaining quiet as he listened in on much of what he missed, but his eyes said he found this hard to believe, too.

"Well, it could last for days, maybe weeks. It's not rare to find destructive, even criminal, behavior. If it's just a lesion, she's fortunate to make it out. All we have to do is remove it."

They all agreed, even Sasuke.

However, in the viewing of the insertion of the tubes, the scans and everything, the X-ray results were presented, and there was _nothing._ No displacements, no abnormalities. Her lobe was clean as a whistle. She was healthy as a horse.

But if it wasn't a tumor, what the hell was it?!

Something else happened when they took Sarada home, that Kabuto also had to be there, and Itachi called him himself while Izumi was shouting and trying to restrain their niece. Sasuke wasn't there due to some business, but he promised to come by, only he arrived when his brother phoned him and insisted his daughter needed him more than ever - so he had no choice but to come by, and at the same time Kabuto arrived. The spasms had gotten worse, but it was an understatement. Even the medication worked temporarily now.

There she was: eagle spread in her sleeveless pajamas, doing a morbid version of crunches, and wailing for it to stop. There was NO way this could be an ordinary spasm.

Her cries were made out to be this: "UNCLE! AUNTIE! FATHER! MAKE IT STOP! IT'S _BURNING!"_

Finally, it stopped as they all stood by - but it left behind snarls ripping through her throat, her eyeballs rolling upwards to show the whites. Kabuto acted fast and rushed for her...only for Sarada to jerk upwards and lash an opened palm to him, striking him so hard it would leave a red mark and sending him onto the ground.

 _ **"Keep away. The sow is MINE!"**_

 _That voice - who the hell is that?!_

Itachi heard himself gasp, but wasn't sure if his wife and brother did the same, as Izumi knelt to help Kabuto stand back up. They watched in distress as that person changed from being in pain and assaulted by invisible forces to someone else altogether. Now her face was twisted and demented as if she enjoyed the sight. But it wasn't as horrible as much as her lifting her shirt up and then thrusting her hips forward, uttering the obscene version of asking one of them to take her - the way he and Izumi would go at it, but that use of word was never in effect.

The entire room was in a hysteria. Sarada - no, it couldn't be her AT ALL, and he wasn't dancing around in denial - fell backwards and howled in torment, continuing her battle as everyone gathered around her to inject morphine to calm her down. Itachi stayed to help, clenching every gut inside his body, while a sobbing Izumi was rushed out by Kisame who came in when things got worse.

Neither of them were going to get any sleep that night - or however longer after that.

 **So, yes, I had a hard time writing the word Sarada swore, which spells "C. U. Next Tuesday" (figure out what that was)? It's one of the living obscenities that is taboo for me to write, along with the F-bomb. Yes, other people use them, but I have my own lines to draw.**

 **Goddamn this chapter. I'm wiping the sweat from my brow because of what happened alone.**

 **As for the condition Sarada is in, I've used encephalitis in a couple previous fics of mine: "I Walked With a Zombie" and "Zombie Brother". It's inflammation of the brain and can affect parts of the personality if it gets worse. :S It can go from mild to the worst of stages. It's also likely that in terms of demonic possession, mental illness is a factor worth discussing with the doctor.**

 **Man, exhaustion. XD But review please since I missed you guys.**


	5. The Person Within

**So I owe you all for waiting, but I know it's worth it.**

 **I don't know for sure, but maybe this story will be ten chapters or a little over. I felt I had to say it ahead of time, but the feeling comes when it does. :)**

 **Been busy with "Allure of Darkness" and "The Gutsy Jinchuuriki", of course, so here ya go!**

Chapter Five

The Person Within

She was falling apart, and thought she would for sure when Kisame ushered her out of that room where her husband and the others were still in there. The howls and curses quieted down after what felt like forever.

 _"The sow is mine"...that did not sound like her at all. What if there is...someone else inside her? Something mental...oh, God, that would mean she'd have to be locked up at her age. Our little girl!_

Izumi didn't want to think about that possibility, but if Dr. Yakushi suggested it, then what else could they do?

The door opened, and out came Itachi, Sasuke and the doctor who was red-faced due to the blow from the crazed girl. All were exhausted and frizzed from the tussling. "She's heavily sedated," Kabuto said. "Which means she might sleep through tomorrow." Kisame raised a hand to rest it on her back for reassurance, but she shrugged it off because even the slightest contact made her cringe.

"What the hell was going on? How could she...fly off the bed like that?" she hissed, looking at every single one of them.

"In pathological cases like these," Kabuto answered, "normal strength is induced, the best way to put it. Accelerated motor performance - for example, if a ninety-pound woman sees her child pinned under the wheel of a truck before going to lift the wheel half a foot above the ground." He reached to take off his glasses which had been broken into nothing more than a crack in the left lens, not enough to shatter.

"But what is wrong with her?" Sasuke asked, putting his hands into his pockets. "And don't give me the temporal lobe shit." His temper snapped and was enough to make Itachi do the same - just like it did to her. All three of them were in agreement.

"Yes, she acted like she was out of her mind," her husband said vehemently. "It pains me to say this, but it's like she was a split person!"

In other words: schizophrenia. There were more than hundreds of these cases around the world. That meant reasonable psychiatry would be in question, and that was also Kabuto's field of expertise. _But that also means Sarada would have to be..._

"I felt her spine when we laid her down," the doctor said. "It felt like a part of it was broken, but not enough to paralyze or kill her. If she does have a split personality, it's an extremely violent one, but we have to eliminate the possibility."

And that meant another goddamned scan, listening to her scream and seeing her flinch under those horrendously loud machines that lit all the way up and down her body just so answers could be given. But when that did happen, the X-rays once again showed negative.

In other words: Sarada was still normal.

~o~

Itachi felt like pulling his hair from his skull, Izumi unable to stop crying and using an entire tissue box, and Sasuke was hissing through his teeth and cursing under his breath. Their child was clean as a whistle on scans, but she was acting like she was torn between being one person and another. What the HELL was turning her from a great little girl into an uncontrollable lunatic?!

Questions asked: were there drugs or alcohol in the house? "Of course there aren't any drugs!" Izumi shouted beyond frustration. "And we keep booze, but not where she would get a hold!"

Then the subject was brought up about the cancelled fishing trip that was supposed to happen when Sarada finished school, and now that her father was home, he suggested that it be brought up again - but only after she got better, and whenever THAT would be! Itachi was so furious, his temper shorter than it used to be in his life.

And then Kabuto suggested the very thing, and that was he would resort to the psychiatrist aspect of his career, meaning split personality disorders would have to be on the table.

His wife was home for the while after explaining to her agent what was going on with their niece, and she had to go out for the day - to a spa with her mother since they hadn't seen each other in a while, and Itachi was the one to suggest it before she lost it any more than he had; they argued about it for a little bit before she finally relented and swore that he had better keep tabs and let her know so that she'd come straight home.

"I wish you could have this with me while Sasuke watches her," she said, just before he left that evening to meet with the doctor as planned. "You deserve some stress relief, too."

He sighed, agreeing with her, and half of him felt like a sinning bastard because their niece was suffering for something they couldn't even figure out, and which she had no fault over. _It'll be all right again,_ he kept telling himself, but it felt too loose to hold the boat in place. It made him feel like the night her mother died birthing her.

Which was what he tried to convince Sasuke and failed miserably.

Thinking about his younger brother made his spinal nerves grow cold as he drove home that evening, having work caught up during the day so that he and Kabuto could talk, and the chill got worse as he imagined how a meeting regarding Sarada's mental health could turn out, and if she would be admitted to a psych ward with no hopes of getting out...that scared the daylights out of him.

Itachi saw the ambulance and police cars surrounding the area outside his house, but he thought nothing of it and assumed it was an accident that took place nearby.

As soon as he was inside, he called for Sasuke and got no answer. Scowling, he wondered if the fool ran off again as he couldn't take it anymore.

When he got to Sarada's room, finding she was sound asleep, his entire body hit subzero as he felt how _COLD_ it was - like an iceberg. The damned window was opened, that was why! Livid, Itachi rushed over to pull the thing inside and lock it in place. _I'm surprised you didn't wake to it, Sarada. And why on earth would you sleep through it with the covers off?!_ He rushed to get them back over her body so she didn't die of hypothermia in her sleep.

When he saw Kisame coming home, he lost his temper on the man for no reason, but because he wanted to know if he'd done it, just so he could save Sasuke for last. "What the hell was that about, Kisame?" he barked. "Sarada's window was wide open -"

"Itachi, your brother was still here when I left! I went to get more thorazine -" The man produced the items in the plastic white bag. "- and he stayed here to keep her company. I would never dream of opening that window at this time of night."

So, in other words, his foolish brother was responsible. He jerked his head up just as the door opened, and there was Izumi coming in, stricken to the face. "Itachi, you haven't heard?!" she cried.

"Heard what?" He hadn't meant to snap, because she flinched at his shortness; she answered anyway.

"I just came home, and I was cornered by a police officer." She took a few deep breaths to calm down before she finished. "Sasuke...Sasuke's dead."

~o~

The spa did wonders, as did telling her mom what was going on, and Hazuki could hardly believe it herself. "You don't suppose that she'll have to be..." She trailed off, refusing to say the horrible words, which Izumi agreed with her on. She didn't want to think about it, just like her husband didn't.

"Maybe there could be another reason behind it," Hazuki told her as they were getting pedicures, and she spoke in hushed voices. "If there isn't a scientific reason..."

Izumi interrupted her. "Mom, if it is, then it scares me. Itachi isn't even religious, so how can he believe it?"

"Might as well, if other options fail. You should just take matters into your own hands if everything else doesn't work out," her mom told her, somber and trying to be optimistic. "Because that child's life is at stake." And those words would haunt her as she would drive back home when the sun went down. No doubt Sarada was passed out at this time, her father watching over her while Itachi was speaking with the doctor again to see what the results were; if they were definitely negative in terms of something physical in the brain, then the word psychiatrist was once again in play.

 _Mom is right. If modern medicine won't work, who can we turn to?_

She came home, seeing Itachi was already there, but before she could pull into the driveway, she was approached by a few police officers - and the lead detective, Kakashi Hatake, was the one to tell her why they were here, and what was with the ambulance.

When Itachi would hear this, he would get into a worse state than he already was. His moods had gotten worse than her hysterics had.

It looked like Sasuke must have been drinking and ended up falling out his daughter's window while she was sleeping. He went down the steps until he touched the bottom of the hill, breaking his neck.

So, when she told her husband that his brother was dead, he punched the nearby wall and broke down into breathless sobs, turning then to collapse into her arms. When they fell to the floor together on their knees, watched by Kisame, past words from Sasuke came back to plague her mind that she wondered if he ever told his daughter:

 _"I'm so sorry I was never a good father. I loved your mother, but I often would see too much of her in you. I deserve your hatred. And here I am while you are sick..."_

There was no sense pondering what could have been.

So, the funeral arrangements were made the next day, the day to take place in four days, and it was a haze. Her Itachi was in such a depression that it made her feel so lost herself. Why was everything going wrong? Why did their niece deserve this, and how could Sasuke -? How could THAT have been just an accident?

Sleeping beside her husband now felt like sleeping next to a stranger. She tried to hold onto him, but he would just lie there and not return the embrace. Nor would he say a word to her.

But he did come downstairs after working - it pissed her off that he functioned well there instead of with his own family now - when Sarada was injected so that she didn't fuss, and she numbly sat in a love chair, staring at nothing in particular as Inoichi Yamanaka was called in so that he could perform the session at Dr. Yakushi's request.

"Are you comfortable, Sarada?" he asked, getting a blank "yes". "And how old are you?"

"Twelve."

Now here came the blow to the mind: "Is there someone inside you?"

"...sometimes."

Izumi covered her eyes and leaned forward rather than leaning into Itachi who furrowed his brows together and didn't utter a word. They hardened when Sarada didn't know _who_ was inside her. Not even her mother, who at first was believed to be in this house, in spirit.

When Izumi found out about the ghost board the girl brought home from school that one time, she lashed out at Itachi for not stopping her from playing it with him. Resulting in nails scratching his face, and they were still there.

"I'm afraid," Sarada finally murmured. "I want them to leave..."

So if Yamanaka talked to the mysterious person, they might leave her. He spoke in a quiet voice, saying that if he or she was there, they were hypnotized like their host. "So, answer all my questions, and come forward..."

Something horrible happened in these forms: a picture of Sarada when she was six fell from atop the fireplace, but the glass didn't break. And then the girl herself contorted in the face, letting out the most demonic of snarls, and her lips chapped a little. The lines around her eyes made her look three decades older than she was. She coughed a few times, then stopped when Inoichi knelt over her and asked if he was talking to the person inside Sarada.

"Who are you?"

The eyes opened, and the face slowly turned to look up at him, the expression tight and most unfriendly...

...and her small, delicate hand which had become so powerful found its way to his groin and grasped him in a way that _lifted him off the floor_ and threw him onto his back. He howled and screamed for help as the small girl found her way atop him, snarling like a wild animal.

Kabuto shouted as he came to grab her and take her off of the poor man. This session had made progress but had also gone nowhere, as Inoichi was nursing his pride with an ice pack that Itachi got him, his scowl having softened but his frustration no better.

Izumi had begun to conclude that this wasn't ordinary schizophrenia; maybe her mom was right, but she was going to keep her mouth closed for the time being.

After this incident, Sarada was strapped down to a gurney at Konoha General, snarling and thrashing, spitting profanities that tore her heart piece by piece. Kabuto said that this was rarely seen anymore except in primitive culture - but had he ever seen anything like her poor face being scratched red in places as if by _fingernails?!_ Sarada hadn't even done that herself; no flesh underneath her nails, either!

That look in her eyes...the eyes of a child...

What was this: a delusion of an invasion of some kind now? Like an _alien_ or a _spirit_? Admittance, after all, as a result?!

Thus she made her decision when she, her husband and Kabuto met with some other staff members who were with him to listen to the case. "I don't care what you call it," Izumi said, slamming her palm on the table. "Itachi and I are NOT going to put her away." He just looked at her but said nothing, only rubbed his eyes, and he exploded once more when Kabuto said he was sorry.

"You're SORRY! You doctors and your bullshit! Unless you give the real treatment, then go to hell! All of you!"

Izumi finally burst, unable to keep quiet anymore. The man she loved as well as herself were deteriorating as their niece was, Sasuke was dead in a goddamned accident in midst of all of this, and now she was going to bring forth her mom's suggestion because Sarada needed it.

"I may have an idea, and I don't care if it is crazy or not."

 **No one reviewed last time, and I wondered if it had to do with what went on with Sarada in here. :(**

 **Anyhoo, new ones appreciated after the long wait. Let's see how Izumi's suggestion goes to her husband and the doctors.**


	6. You Know What She Did?

**HAPPY HALLOWEEN TO ALL! :D Pumpkins, candy, popcorn balls, red wine (for legals anyway) and all horror classics - including the movie this is inspired by!**

 **Here is the final result of one such disturbing, depraved act committed by the possessed girl, and this is where I say grab a vomit bag or something in case you feel sick or at least going to faint. Tonight couldn't be more perfect to finally present it...**

 **MWAHAHAHA!**

Chapter Six

You Know What She Did?

"Izumi, what are you talking about?"

Itachi looked at her with utter shock that she spoke up to take the initiative when these bastards just failed to identify what was happening to their niece, the daughter they never had. Everything was taking a toll on them that he was afraid of their family breaking apart.

His brother, his beloved brother whom he still cared about in spite of everything, was dead in a terrible accident that looked like drinking - but toxicology yet to get back to them - and fell down the hill. And he had to be in his own daughter's _ROOM WHILE SHE SLEPT?!_

For a moment, he thought about agreeing with the theory, considering his brother's drinking habits, but after their arrangements? Itachi doubted every detail of that.

Now his wife was angry at him, because in a way, it was his fault because of that day with the ghost board their niece brought home. _I should have stopped her when I had the chance._ He wasn't to blame her because of being distant with her in their bed; everything had gotten to him so much that he had no idea how to function anymore. He hated himself for knowing Izumi was going through the same yet detached himself.

The memory lingered of her nails scratching his skin when she struck him for his stupidity at not suspecting that the "spirit" couldn't have been Sakura; she'd heard enough of those stories in her childhood, too! But Itachi had never once believed in those, except erred on side of caution, which he failed this time and would never forgive himself.

She looked at him when she answered his question. "Something that doesn't happen much in the modern western world, and is dangerous all the same."

 _Oh, don't tell me..._

Kabuto seemed to know what she was thinking, and he held his breath for a moment before speaking finally. "Well, I know your family had religious beliefs, but too bad Itachi's doesn't."

"Cut to the chase, will you?" Itachi said shortly. _Control yourself, damn it! You're about to hear the damned solution!_

"It's...exorcism," Kabuto finally said. "Not in my field, but it's the stylized ritual in which the priest or even a rabbi try to drive out the so-called invading spirit. It's pretty much discarded these days except by the Catholics and deeply religious who keep it in the closet because of the...risks. But there are known reports of it working. It's just a suggestion - was that what you were going to suggest, Izumi?"

Disbelieved, Itachi glanced at her only to see her eyes lowered. She nodded, saying nothing. Half of him wanted to object because of his own reasons, but because he was the one to screw up the most, he let her take the rein. What else was left for the child they raised together?

The doctor went on to explain that the belief of possession was often caused by the victims' beliefs, though that was unlikely since Sarada had none, whatsoever...except that once again brought back the memory of that accursed board he made her return to her friend. He stated it monotonously.

"You're telling us we should take our niece...to a witch doctor."

~o~

 _Speaking words bigger than yourself? Check._

 _Feeling of a presence that isn't walking among - like the belief of a deceased loved one? Also check._

 _It's also said that during the daytime, the victim could fight the demon, but at night is when vulnerability's the strongest - but it seems it's worse now both times._

 _All of this looked like a mental disorder, but nothing worked wonders. It all means something otherworldly is in play to throw us all off..._

You'd think that the doctors were too closed today due to modern inventions to even _suggest_ what her mother had. At least that wouldn't change.

They had no choice but to take Sarada home, and they did after the meeting was over, with her sedated and wrapped up in blankets. But to even LOOK at her face, the monstrous state it was turning into...it made her aunt's stomach roll over in more ways than one. Itachi did the job of carrying their niece for her with a tight expression. Kisame helped him to the door.

 _We're just going to have to keep her sedated so many times that it's just going to break through anyway and tear us down all over again._

She was happy to have gotten it out of her system, but her husband wasn't even on board no matter numbly agreeing with her. "I'm going to put her down," Itachi told her, and that was all. He brushed past Kisame who only exhaled sharply and shook his head. She could not agree more with the unspoken message.

"He's like this just because of everything," she mumbled, wishing it was that simple. She was so stressed out with struggling to hold on every day. But that one choice left was all they needed, and she planned to get a hold of the local church as soon as possible, though she knew it wouldn't be easy to just agree to perform an exorcism.

Just the word itself scared her so much that she nearly crawled out of her own skin. The risks involved to both victim and the one performing the rite - it meant life or death and no guarantees. She could just take a sleeping pill and sleep through the ordeal, but that was the coward's way. Same if her man did that.

Izumi was sure that she and Itachi still loved each other in spite of all of this, and if faith was strong enough for longer endurance, everything would be all right again.

While her husband was still upstairs with their niece, Kisame told her that someone was here to see them, and she snapped at him as to who it could be - and it was none other than Kakashi Hatake, who was waiting in the living area, patient but eager to get on with why he was here. "Is your husband home?" he asked as he followed her into the kitchen for a cup of tea that she personally made herself.

"He is. Upstairs with Sarada," Izumi answered, sitting across from him at the island. He hummed, closing his only eye that wasn't covered up.

"I see. Would she then, by any chance, remember if her father was in her room that night?" She frowned, assuming the answer was no, because as far as she knew, the girl was out like a log.

"She was heavily sedated. She's been so sick lately."

The silver-haired man frowned. "That serious?"

"I'm afraid it is, Detective," Itachi said, announcing himself and coming to sit beside her but in front of their visitor. "But we still don't know what it is." He helped himself to a cup without even asking her, but she let it slide. "I'm sorry I haven't been here to greet you as soon as you arrived."

Kakashi waved his hand in dismissal. "It's nothing I'm not acquainted with. But now that you're here, I'll cut to the chase. I understand the funeral for your brother will be tomorrow." Itachi nodded somberly, his eyes distant which the detective noted. "I'm sorry that you are both going through this loss as well as whatever is happening to your niece." _Her mother's death, her father's distance only for that to end when she gets sick of all times._ "But I thought I would come here to inform you that it's very...strange. The deceased - your brother and the girl's estranged father since her mother's death in childbirth - stays here at the house for perhaps half an hour before the death, then goes up into the room of his very sick daughter. To speak it plainly, it's not likely he would just...fall from a window."

She and Itachi hadn't seen the body since it was taken away for examination, and they were going to tomorrow before the funeral would take place, because Sarada was top priority, but what the detective said caused the blood to curdle: the manner in which the body looked from a great fall came in a chance of one in a thousand. "So, my hunch, or rather _opinion,_ " Hatake said after another sip of tea, "is that Sasuke was killed by a powerful man, point one. And the fracturing of his skull, point two, points to the variants of the things mentioned. Finally, to make it only probable but not certain, he was killed and then pushed from your niece's window," he finished.

 _But no one was in the room, except Sarada, so how could this be?!_

They were being told that Sasuke was _murdered_ , but it wasn't yet possible, only she could feel her heart picking up on the verge of a panic attack, and Itachi was stoned on the outside. Except inside was another story.

"So, to keep you out of it, Itachi, given you were at the doctor's office and Izumi, you were at the spa with your mother - thus leaving the deceased caring for his daughter - it could be that someone must have come between the time of leaving and the time of return home. Neither of you expected anything that day?"

None at all. "Kisame takes care of all of that," Itachi told him.

"Maybe you can, incidentally, ask your niece if she saw her father in her room that night? It wouldn't hurt to ask only if she was better," Kakashi offered patiently, putting down the cup, thanking her when he was done. "I'm really sorry about all of this. That you are going through it all over again."

Izumi looked down. "Yeah, we raised her like she was our own, after we lost what was supposed to be our first." She swallowed the throbbing lump in her throat, remembering the horrible pain in her brain, the memory loss and blackouts, until finally her man took her to the hospital where the tumor was found and removed - but when it happened as well as before that, their unborn baby was lost, and the bleeding she didn't notice until too late. She wasn't able to bear another, ever again, as a result. Sarada was only a toddler at the time of the tragedy.

Thinking about this made her all the more determined that they would NOT lose her, too.

The detective promised he would be back as soon as Sarada was well enough to be asked; Izumi was still sure she wouldn't recall a thing. She locked the door after the man before turning around only to find herself wrapped up in Itachi's arms, his face burying into her shoulder and hair. She sucked in a breath and returned the embrace.

"I'm sorry...Izumi," he murmured. Sighing at his apology and overcome with the invisible waters of healing, she loosened her tight hold but kept it on - only for the moment to be shattered as soon as chaos returned to life in the form of crashing upstairs and Sarada's shrieking and wailing...as well as that demonic voice that was _not_ her.

 _"NO, PLEEEASE, STOOOOP!"_

 _ **"DO IT, BITCH!"**_

~o~

What he and his dearest wife saw was something you would see in a movie like _Poltergeist_ , only it was real. Everything in Sarada's room was flying about, controlled by an unseen force that felt nastier than filth in the swamp. And that was not the worst...

 **"** _ **Let me cut your milk buds!"**_

And the action: somehow Sarada managed to get a hold of a sharp instrument - they were _scissors_ that she kept for school projects - and tore open the front of her own nightgown to show her developing BREASTS before bringing the sharp tip up and around, and it was enough to push Izumi over a shrieking edge, while Itachi erupted with righteous fury at this atrocity, trying not to look at his niece's growing parts even though he used to see her naked when she was a younger child.

"SARADA, STOP THIS!" Itachi bellowed, letting his wife take her behind and hold her in place so that he wrestled to get the weapon out of her hand before she ruined two important parts of her own body.

And he did get them away - only to find his face close to a certain lower area of her body that was a disgusting reversal of what he would rather do on his wife. The demonic girl growled akin to lust, **"Lick me, bastard!"**

Itachi quickly pulled his face away from that place no uncle should ever touch or kiss a girl who was his own flesh and blood, but it turned out to be a bad decision either way, as he was slapped so hard across the face he felt his skin flap like ocean waves, and was sent onto the floor, in which a horrendous agony ruptured in his lower back - specifically his tailbone. He heard himself howl like an animal which had been shot during the hunt.

His wife had been sent off the bed and against the wall, knocking into the wardrobe that eventually tumbled over as soon as she scrambled out of the way, and Itachi rolled away before it could land atop him. Wood splintered and flew about in small particles. The commotion stirred up Kisame and the other servants who roared for them, but the door slammed shut, and the floral love chair slid before it to lock it in place. Keeping him and Izumi inside.

 _Oh, God..._

Sarada's head did one thing no living person could ever survive lest death and permanent paralysis could take place: the bones snapped as the entire head swiveled around one hundred and eighty degrees, leering and bloody with the cracks getting deeper into soft flesh.

That monster spoke again while still grinning. **"Do you know what she did?"** Glossy black eyes swiveled to look at Izumi who was standing up now, but whimpering and crying; Itachi was still laying where he was and trying not to do what she was doing, only the nightmarish implication behind the demon's words made him crack and half-rise only to fall back down again. **"Your slut bag niece?"**

What she did...that could mean one thing and reserved him to not tell Detective Hatake even if it meant obstruction of justice: _she...Sarada...she k...she killed him._

She'd killed Sasuke. She murdered her own father - no, that THING inside her made her do it.

 **Hard as hell to bring to life the self-mutilation moment, more than everything else. But we know the worst after that is sure to come. Please don't flame me when you review.**

 **For those of you who never saw the movie: the original version was the possessed girl masturbating with a crucifix, mutilating her girly parts, though we never see it explicitly done and only blood seen as well as hearing the foulest things: "Let Jesus f-k you!" and "Do you know what she did? our c-ing daughter?" (hinting heavily that she DID kill the man, who was her mother's friend - at least, the demon inside made her do it)**

 **"Poltergeist" - that just makes you think about clown dolls (shudder) little girls abducted into her own closest, old burial grounds your house was built atop, and halucinations of your flesh falling off your face...ugh, I remember shuddering and trying hard to sleep that night when I was still a child. My grandma saw it with me, thank God, which made things easier.**


	7. Worst Nightmare

**How long has it been? Over one...month. But Thanksgiving was great, by the way. :D And my aunt being here, things are a little better and we got the house in time for Christmas.**

 **No excuse for keeping you all waiting, having been on a roll with "Allure of Darkness" and "The Gutsy Jinchuuriki", and as always: disappointed for no reviews. :(**

 **Or is it that people are too scared of this content to speak? There's definitely more triggers happening in here. Be wary of more gross-out moments in this new chapter.**

Chapter Seven

Worst Nightmare

Sasuke's funeral came and went, but before all attended, there was the major problem of what to do about Sarada. They couldn't just leave her alone, but if they did, who knew what would happen in their absence.

He could never stop thinking about the fact SHE killed his brother, her own father - but he had to remind himself it wasn't her, but that monster, whatever it was that lived in her and had to be driven out.

But before this day, Itachi allowed his wife to get a hold of someone from the town's Buddhist services. Someone who might be able to help them. There was one man who didn't seem like the first option, but Naruto and Sasuke knew him when they were all boys. He was said to be a tad lazy, but he always got the job done and had a better brain perhaps than the rest of the younger servicemen around him.

However, there were also a couple problems: he recently lost his father whom he had been very close with, but hadn't been there when he died, and it seemingly affected him so much.

"To see if he can...exorcise our niece," Itachi stated, shaking his head as they both sat on the sofa. "Someone who had gone through loss could perform this life-or-death -"

"Itachi!" Izumi stood over him when she interrupted him, hands on both hips, and she was viciously glaring at him. Which spoke volumes in that there was no time to fight and argue, that he had to agree or else. Sighing with defeat, Itachi relented.

 _Why have we gotten to this? Fighting and arguing more than we always did? Thirteen years of marriage, now with what is happening to our niece...it feels like we might not repair anything even if we save Sarada!_

"I'm sorry, Izumi," he said quietly, looking down at his lap. He had never been so ashamed of himself.

"You should be. You're just like this because Sasuke is gone - not to be insensitive - and because of everything. But what can we do about US in the middle? I feel like we can still make it through, but you don't seem to want to try and take enough off your shoulders, and I have no idea what to do anymore!"

Itachi lifted his head, looking to his wife - his best friend and soulmate - who was on the verge of crying now. He knew she was right, that he should do something because she didn't deserve this any more than he did. Sarada, their niece and the child they never had, was an innocent party suffering for something that wasn't her fault. Izumi had done the job of doing the last resort for them when medical science did nothing but fail them, and Itachi had no real religious beliefs of his own, not in years.

Because whatever that thing speaking and spewing the most terrible things to them was, that beast wasn't Sarada. Her face had turned so monstrous neither of them could recognize her now, and what happened recently made matters worse that Izumi ran to him sobbing, clutching onto him and weeping that she wanted to hit that thing, but it was still Sarada. This was before she contacted Shikamaru Nara.

"What did she say?" Itachi remembered demanding, and her tears continued to pour like molten lava as she blubbered out what made him want to go back up those stairs to do what she wished.

 _"Oh, poor Izumi, looks like you both failed as a wife and a mother, although I can't say I didn't expect it from someone who can even give your love a family, as he desired to live in a house that holds such promise of joy and laughter from children, and yet you are unable to see to such. I'm surprised that Itachi doesn't see to find another to fulfill such obligations."_

 _How could...how could you...?!_

If he'd lost his temper, he would have broken the poor child's neck, knowing Sarada never would have said such things, but damn whoever this beast was who was butchering their lives.

And now, after Izumi hysterically contacted the shrine, he held her for the rest of the night, but wished he could have comforted them both in another, intimate form like he did after she recovered physically from the surgery and miscarriage. Except this time meant his work was cut out for him. He wasn't sure if making love was a good idea at a time like this.

"When does he come?" he asked his wife, standing up and taking her into his arms just as she was collapsing off her feet.

~o~

She had nightmares about Sarada, waking up sobbing and sometimes screaming that it woke her husband up as well. And this time was when the demon in that child taunted her, telling her that her husband wouldn't love her after all these years, because of how barren she was and the joke they all lived this entire time.

 _What do you know, demon? Our family has endured more suffering than you think! You don't know what you're talking about! Some all-powerful entity who relishes pain..._

Today, she was out and needing fresh air, maybe a walk in the park - because that was where she and Shikamaru Nara were going to meet. The sun was shining, the air was sweet, the flowers were in bloom, and tonight would be one of many summer festivals for fireworks. It was supposed to be a time of joy and celebration, many flocking at this time of day to the beach, and being out here helped Izumi clear her head a little. She stood atop one of the bridges that arched over the stream, wearing a high ponytail, a laced denim shirt and a purple peasant skirt, finished with her jewelry. She tried to convince Itachi to at least come with her, but he was stressing himself out by being there at the house with "Sarada".

"Mrs. Uchiha, glad I could find you here."

"Oh, Shikamaru!" She was so happy that she wanted to cry, and she did. But she pulled out a tissue from her purse and wiped her eyes. "Thank God you're here."

"Yeah," he mumbled. He was dressed in a navy blue rain jacket despite this weather, paired with gray sweats and a t-shirt. He must have been jogging to take his mind off whatever. "I'm sorry your family is going through more than just a drag. That's why whenever I go through that, jogging does it for me, even in this weather - and just laying back to enjoy the clouds." They were walking across the bridge at this time.

Their conversation involved him specializing in psychology, which was not boring for him as it involved helping people in order to understand, since these weren't the Dark Ages where you executed a murderer or a criminal based on word alone. Nara attended the university in Tokyo to get his degree before coming back home to Konoha, because his father was priest at the shrine - but his father recently died from lung cancer.

Izumi wished she could say something besides the fact she was sorry for his loss, even if Nara told her he was sorry for the loss of her brother-in-law - and that was her cue to bring up Sarada. Because the monster controlling her killed Sasuke, which meant she might not remember a damned thing. That was only a small comfort on her part. "Shikamaru, what if a person who was a...murderer or a criminal, or something, came to you for help, some kind of help, would you have to turn them in?" she had to ask.

"Well, if he came to me for special advice, if that's what you mean, then I'd say no. Though I'd try to convince him to turn himself in - or her."

 _Which means that there is no real help other than proper punishment._ Time to change the tactic, which was why they were here: "And how about getting an...exorcism?"

Shikamaru looked troubled at the topic, and not surprised in the slightest. "Oh, right, that." He cleared his throat and shrugged his shoulders once. Now they stopped to find a bench to sit on, and she smoothed her crinkled skirt out. "The first thing to do is to get a time machine and get them back to the medieval ages. It just doesn't happen much anymore, not since we started learning about...mental illness, paranoia, schizophrenia and the likes. But Mrs. Uchiha, since I joined Buddhism, I haven't known any priest personally who performed one exorcism," he said, and he sounded almost in regret that he couldn't even help her. "Now, about your niece..."

"Yes." She swallowed the tightening of her esophagus. "She just...isn't Sarada. My husband at first thought it was insanity, and I was inclined to agree with him, but the doctors couldn't even diagnose what was remotely wrong with her, and we just can't let it tear our family apart. Whoever that person is, it's not Sarada. Shikamaru, it's our little girl..." She couldn't keep it in anymore and leaned forward into his shoulder, crying her heart out, and his single arm came to wrap around her back.

"I believe you, but first, the church needs to conduct an investigation as to whether or not this is not just mental illness. It takes time. I wish I could do that myself, but I need approval. Now, I could see your niece, but as a psychiatrist -"

Izumi jumped up then and there. "Oh, not a psychiatrist! She needs a _priest!_ She's already seen every doctor in every field, and they sent me to you - but are you gonna send me back to them?!"

She calmed down when he finally agreed to see Sarada, but until he was convinced enough that he would go to the shrine to speak about the case, she was NOT to get her hopes up. No matter if the country believed in spiritualism, ghosts and demonic possession.

When they got back to the house, Itachi was leaving the girl's room, and he numbly greeted Shikamaru and told him he was glad he was here; Izumi was not surprised but still shocked by his appearance. His normally sleek ponytail was a frizzy mess, and there were dark circles under his eyes; she knew she had them, too.

But he had something she didn't: a reddening black eye to the right side of his poor, handsome face.

In his hands was none other than the lynx necklace he gave their niece, and one side of the chain was torn apart. He never would do such a thing; did it get like that when invisible forces made everything in Sarada's room fling about? Seeing it tore her heart all over again.

"Just take small, quiet steps towards the room," Itachi told Nara, and kept his sharp eye on the younger man until he approached the closed door and slowly turned the knob to see the horror on the other side.

~o~

He was so relieved that his wife and their potential savior had arrived. He was breaking internally now that the last act of destruction occurred in that room; this time, it involved the present he specially bought his niece, and the chain was broken if the charm got lucky.

"Oh, God," Izumi whispered, her eyes glazing when she took it into both hands, closing every finger over it and putting it over her heart. "She didn't..."

"No, IT did," Itachi answered, glaring at the cracked door. _That thing which is massacring everything._ It was then that he decided to have a peek inside, whispering to her to come and join him. She obliged, apparently having the same thought on her mind, so that they could see what was going on.

Inside, because her personal possessions were damaged, the room was cleared out, so this was what was left: the bed configured with four posts, all covered with sheets, and roped with heavy duty bindings. All to keep the possessed in place, prevent her from maiming herself again as well as striking out at others - and there "she" was with her face cracking and showing bloody crimson in places. The eyes were inhuman yellow, like a serpent's, and attached to the nose was an oxygen tube. Staining the collar of her provided hospital gown was green-yellow vomit which was enough to make Itachi's innards boil like acid - especially the SMELL.

Even Nara was disturbed by the appearance. "Hello...Sarada," he said uncertainly. "I'm a friend of your aunt and uncle's. I'd like to help you."

The door was closed in a crack, but he had to open it ajar enough for him and Izumi to have a watch at the scene. And the creature tied to the bed replied in that same croaking baritone: **"Undo these straps, son."**

But Shikamaru wasn't going to cave in, having figured out the purpose of the ties. "I'm afraid I can't. Because you might hurt yourself, Sarada," he told her as he approached her form.

 **"I'm not Sarada."**

"Well, if you're not Sarada, then who are you? My name is Shikamaru Nara."

His attempt at friendly introductions aggravated the being. Yellow eyes bulged widely. **"And I'm your worst nightmare. Now, kindly undo these damned straps!"** it snarled, lurching forward only a little. Except the young priest wasn't scared in the slightest.

"If you're a real demon, then you can do something about making these straps disappear. Your kind has all the tricks up the sleeves."

 **"That is much too vulgar a display of power for us, Nara."** _Or you're just playing around with us. You could make objects float around the room._

Shikamaru grunted with dissatisfaction at the response. "In that case, can we cut to the chase and you can tell me where Sarada is, if you're not her?" he offered, slightly insulted.

The creature cracked a small grin, displaying rotting teeth. **"In here...with us. But she doesn't know what is really going on as we speak. However..."** That horrid smile grew enough to resemble that of a hannya mask.

 **"Your father is in here with us, Nara. Would you like to leave a message?"**

The air froze like ice in the north. So, that was the play now: the demon was bringing up Shikamaru's dead father to also screw around with him. Monsters from the other side always used friends and loved ones against each other as those in the western civilization. Itachi gritted his teeth so hard that he thought they were going to shatter. Izumi squeezed her eyes shut, and he was tempted to do the same.

"Well, if that's true, then tell me what my father's name is - as well as my mother's."

Unfortunately, he didn't get the satisfaction of hearing the names of both his parents, but something far more repulsive: the monstrous girl opened her scarred mouth and unleashed a torrent of sickly green gunk which could be mistaken for pea soup, and the smell was rancid as rotten fish.

Izumi had to bolt away, muttering that she needed a drink and was going to have his and the priest's ready if he wanted it - or perhaps he would indeed need it.

~o~

She decided to spend her time ironing the priest's shirt which had been washed out, while Shikamaru spent his time looking at the paintings Sarada sometimes made in her spare time, waiting to have his t-shirt returned to him when it was done.

"Thank you," he said quietly, accepting it, but when he saw the look on her face as well as Itachi's, he sighed. "Look, I'm only against the possibility of doing your niece more harm than good. I know I can't make it any worse, but I can't do this illegally if I wanted to. I need evidence that the order would accept as true signs of possession."

"Like what?" Itachi asked impatiently, but composed.

"Speaking in a different language, for one. But I don't know the rest; I'd have to look it up," Shikamaru said, folding his shirt up.

Izumi scoffed. "I thought you were supposed to be an expert."

"There are no experts," Nara said in exasperation. "Look, you only know so much about exorcism as the other priests. Your niece doesn't say she's a demon, or gave a specific identity. I've seen many who claimed to be from the other side which only says the same thing as you being Amaterasu incarnate. You asked me for what was best for her, and six months under observation is probably what is best."

Itachi refused to accept this. "Every day we look at that face and listen to that voice as well as endure those horrible things spoken from that rotten tongue, we know it's not Sarada. That thing upstairs is just - don't you tell us for a fact you don't know what is wrong with her except in her mind!" he almost shouted before pulling himself together.

"Yeah, you tell us for a fact an exorcism won't do any good!" Izumi added angrily, wishing she could get something made of glass - anything from this room - and throw it into the wall when it wouldn't solve the problem.

Shikamaru could only look back at them, knowing his gut was agreeing with them, but he still had to go by the strict regulations. _Regulations be damned!_

 **Bloody hell, disgusting is all I can say. : & Reviews appreciated. **


	8. Lovely Day For an Exorcism

**I have to say this in response to the last person who reviewed: I write my stories however long I want, because it FEELS the right length. How long or short it is does not matter, but what is INSIDE.**

 **I intend to have this story done before the holidays really take place, and I also recently put up the first four chapters to a new chilling tale, "The Plague", if anyone is interested. I wanted to have that done last month, but I finally got down to it.**

Chapter Eight

Lovely Day For an Exorcism

She was tempted to finally say this young man abandoned his true faith because of the loss of his father, but she bit her tongue on saying such a thing. Itachi was surely thinking the same thing.

However, when Nara was leaving their house, he turned back to them and asked, "Did Sarada know a priest was coming over?"

"No, she did not," Itachi answered, leaning to one side in the doorway.

"And you both heard my father died - but did SHE know?"

Izumi had a feeling he would ask that, and it scared her so much, but at the same time, it didn't, because demons always knew things man didn't, and could twist it against you. "She didn't at all," she said, wrapping her arms around herself. "Why do you ask?" _Maybe he thinks he'll be able to help, after all..._

But then he disappointed them both, or was that stalling? "Not important. Good night to you both. I'll be back as soon as possible."

So...there WAS hope yet, but it wasn't the same as him officially stating an exorcism would be in play. She and Itachi watched him go just as the wind slowed down, and above them, you could hear the fireworks. She looked up and saw the first few explode into the skies. She heard herself gasp a little at the beautiful sight, and a simple thing like that could warm and calm your heart in the most distressing of times.

She turned into her husband and wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest. And they'd just had another distressing conversation regarding their niece possessed and in dire need of help, their potential last hope claiming that he lost his true faith and believed only in psychology as the answer - but here they were when fireworks were starting to go off.

"Izumi."

Her name was all he could say before she raised herself up and kissed him then and there on the lips. Their personal sparks flew just as another work blew into the skies.

They were back upstairs and in bed in no time, disregarding anything else - including "Sarada" who had quieted down for the night - and dinner, for now. It had been weeks, but they lost track of how many exactly, since they'd done this. So much stress, so much of everything...and they'd earned this. She let him do the job first, and then she would have her turn. Just like they'd done on their wedding night, which had been so long ago, and after that, it was always late night summer loving on occasion, and during spring was soft clothes with no underwear to tear off, but during winter and autumn when temperatures were dropping, it was wait until you were warm in bed.

This time was different: taking it slowly and sweetly since their love and marriage was threatening to break apart after spending so much time focused on their niece they loved so much, and if their marriage survived, they would save her.

Lifting her arms for him, Izumi let him pull her blouse over her head, and she went to push down her skirt, leaving herself in her soft, black lace undergarments, and before she could reach behind her back, he grunted and stopped her. "Mm-mm, no doing my job."

She was naked in no time at all, and then turned around to rid him of his clothing. There was her man, lean and powerful, glistening with summer perspiration and stress relief. She reached up and ran her hands along his strong pectorals and ripped abdomen, his hands coming to caress her back before he pulled her close for a brief embrace and murmured into her hair that he waited so long for her again. He picked her up then, laying her down on the bed, manhood hard and pressed against her innermost treasured part, and dazzling her in a manner that took her to another place, far away from here...

This was one of the better nights they'd had in a long while, and Itachi finally spoke about the fact that Shikamaru would save their family, no matter how difficult or even impossible this was. Smiling, Izumi told him she loved him and thanked him for finally having faith.

~o~

Last night was without words, and between him and his wife, it was like a heavy emotional weight was lifted for the while. It had been a few weeks at most since last time, but it felt like it had been much longer than that. He sank into blissful oblivion with her, forgetting about everything else.

Perhaps there were pleasant dreams afterwards, but he had no recollection other than waking up in the morning to find they were still entwined, their wedding picture an additional reminder of the good times - but on the other side, which was her side, was one of their family portraits...when Sarada was still herself.

All was quiet that night, but the next day, it was back to the crisis.

He decided to not go up into that room, nor would Izumi, for both their sakes. _Just this once_. They spent that morning quietly close together, holding onto each other on the sofa, and enjoying a cup of tea she made. He wished that this nightmare was one they could all wake up from. But they couldn't remain like this, because this afternoon, Shikamaru Nara would return; this time, he had to instruct them to be away from the door, because it was for the best.

"I'll let you both know what happened, if it goes...well." And by "well", he meant if he wasn't killed or maimed in any way, should "Sarada" break loose from her restraints. So far, she hadn't.

Izumi was on the phone at this time while he tried to work in the office. He'd found a way to continue that and try not to let the living nightmare affect this aspect. She was talking to her agent, and it was then that he decided it best she got away for awhile after everything. He could take care of the rest with "Sarada" on his own, but with Nara in the picture. It would be easier for her, though he doubted she would agree easily.

While the young priest was still upstairs, he chose to wait until she was off the phone right after he had done so with a new client who wanted advice on retraining current employees for the new model, rather than letting them go. "Baby, we have to talk."

"You're right, we do," she agreed. "He says I should come back to work, and that means a week in Suna for a desert shoot. But I don't feel right leaving you here, with Sarada..."

He cut her off and went to embrace her. "No, you should go. I'll handle everything just fine. It's for the best that you get away from all of this until it is settled. I'm confident it will work out." Except he doubted his own words, because Nara made it clear that no matter his ideas, the Buddhist services had the final say about performing an exorcism, and if it had been done illegally, he would be in deep with the fishes.

"I wish I could get my hopes up," she said softly, lowering her eyes to the ground. She then leaned her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. "I want to know the answer before I leave..."

 _Hopefully it's today._

~o~

 **"What a lovely day for an exorcism."**

He hissed through his teeth at the casual talk of this monster. He had never seen anything like this in his life, only heard in old stories and seen in movies, and his father had always said that there were demons everywhere, inside and outside no matter where you were from. The western world had little comprehension of these ways, often shoving aside the dangerous methods in favor of simpler ways that didn't risk lives.

Some people in Japan adopted those ways, but even that had no impression on the entire country - yet.

Back to what the demon-girl said to him as he set up the equipment, including _ofuda_ seals for him to place around the bed. "You'd really like that, wouldn't you?" Shikamaru asked, thinking maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea after what "she" said last time about his father. Her aunt and uncle claimed that she had no idea of Shikaku Nara's death due to lung cancer, which gave cause for suspicion, though he doubted it because of his absence in his father's death while being away to perform a service. _If only I was there...but they told me there was nothing I could have done either way._

The demon grinned nastily. **"Intensely."**

"But wouldn't it drive you out of Sarada?" Shikamaru asked, raising an eyebrow and earning a falling of the face.

 **"Ahhh...it would bring us together."**

By the way it spoke, it sounded almost like a lewd suggestion - or perhaps it referred to itself and HIM, and he had to prevent himself from flinching. Shikamaru hid it well, but he set down the recorder to tape the events, and see if there was a chance that it could speak a different language, which was one of many signs of demonic possession.

He nearly jumped when the drawer of the bedside table slid out... _all by itself._ "Did you do that?!"

 **"Uh huh,"** the monster husked out, wagging its serpentine tongue.

Shikamaru hit the play button, and what transpired began with speaking in different languages, starting with their own and English. But then it came to him asking how long the fiend planned to live inside the poor girl who had her whole life ahead of her, thinking of the effect it was having on the only family she had left, now that both parents were gone. **"Until the slut bag bitch lies stinking and rotting in the earth."** He tried not to flinch at the blasphemous use of language.

 _Alright, you leave me no choice. If you're really a demon, I'm going to do what needs to be done._ With that, he reached for the first paper seal from his suitcase that he opened up, and held it before the bound creature's now widened yellow eyes.

 **"What is that? Keep it away!"** But he placed the seal at the right end post of the bed, and the reaction was as he expected if not directly touching the victim. **"AAAARRRRGGGHHH IT BURNS!"**

Quickly, Shikamaru picked up the recorder and brought it over to the thrashing and squirming figure who squeezed the eyes shut in midst of the pain. It was saying words, but none that he recognized. Frowning, Shikamaru demanded who the being was, and not to lie to him.

 _But it's in so much pain it won't be able to hide anything._

He couldn't make it out because the writhing beast was shrieking and cursing in tongues, but there were ways outside this house to decipher the meaning of the language - and he would have the demon's identity.

~o~

"You're at the airport?"

 _"I am, and I'll be getting on the plane soon. I'll call you as soon as I land, baby. I love you."_

He smiled into the phone even though she couldn't see him. "Love you, too." He kissed the bottom and then turned it off before looking up to see Nara standing there, looking somber and exhausted as much as he was.

"Your wife's gone?"

Itachi nodded. "I convinced her to carry on with work while I take care of everything for her. Thought it for the best even though she wanted to stay," he said, leaning back and stretching, sighing when his spinal bones popped. "I could go for a drink. Would you like a sake?"

"Please." The Uchiha stood up and went to the cabinet where he kept the liquor, getting out the bottle and two cups. He then handed Nara his and sat beside the younger man with his own. "So, Itachi, I put sacred seals on the four posts of the bed, and one more near her head. She reacted...violently. I taped everything and will get the unclear message translated because it isn't a language that I'm familiar with," Shikamaru explained.

Something inside Itachi lit up then and there. _One step closer._ But it was also then that a crack inside him began to open, and the words were out of his mouth. "She...killed Sasuke."

"...what?"

"My brother - her father. She killed him. Or rather, that thing inside her. I never saw what happened, but it looks like he was pushed out her window." Now that he thought of it, the demon took advantage of whatever hatred Sarada had for her father over his treatment of her all her life, and look at her now.

The look that Nara gave him was one of shock and sympathy in one.

 **Finally able to do Shikamaru's POV while Izumi is away. Wonder why I didn't do it before? Let's just say it was simply because I couldn't think of anything at first, and also I was still doing some more research on exorcism in Japan and other cultures.**

 **Review as always. :)**


	9. Call Upon the Buddha

**I know I never rushed this story, but it felt the end was nearer than expected. :)**

Chapter Nine

Call Upon the Buddha

 _"She" killed her own father, but her uncle is protecting "her"._

He recalled the day Izumi Uchiha confided in him, asking him what he would have to do if a murderer or a criminal begged for help, and the answer was obviously to turn themselves in. Except that wasn't the case with young Sarada Uchiha, and he understood why.

 _"Eno on ma I!"_

Those were the words in response to him demanding the fiend's identity. But it didn't make any sense...

"It's a language, alright."

Tenten reached to shut the damned thing off. They were in her studio, which was a storage of translations of various texts to their own tongue. And linguistics was her specialty, so she was the first person Shikamaru went to for help. He couldn't have done it without her. _Now that we know it's a language, then what is it since it's not one we know of...?_

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked, having scrunched his brows and wracked his brains, unable to figure for himself despite his genius mind. Though he doubted his intellect could help him much now since - no, he stopped himself there. An innocent child was in danger, and she was the daughter of a friend of his and Naruto's. Though he and Sasuke Uchiha were merely acquaintances and hardly agreed on much of anything; after Sakura's death, he refused to even have anything to do with the guy, let him be Naruto and Itachi's problem.

Tenten gave him a shining grin. "It's our language, only in reverse."

 _Our language in reverse..._

Now, here was what he got when she played it backwards: _I am no one!_

But before he could hear more, his mobile rang, and he got the call from Itachi who said that something else happened with his possessed niece. Now Shikamaru was on his way back to the house. The night was still young, except the temperatures dropped to freezing. And this time, the family's butler, Kisame, was there to let him in and take him upstairs to where the man of the house himself was anxiously waiting.

"I'm glad Izumi isn't here to see this," was all Itachi said when he opened the door, and cold wind washed over them. Shikamaru pulled his jacket tighter around himself as he ventured in with Itachi, Kisame standing behind and keeping a good watch. The Uchiha had a heavier coat on himself as he quietly walked over, the hallway light behind them providing enough to show his actions and what he wanted Shikamaru to see: he unbuttoned the child's shirt halfway up to show a malnourished, sickly gray abdomen and ribs protruding, but that wasn't the horrific half of it.

The words showed in the skin, having been carved into the fragile stomach perhaps from the inside, causing the air to hit murderous subzero to his insides and the other men.

 _HELP ME._

This was the final nail to the coffin besides the tape recording. He knew what he had to do now, no matter if he still had any doubts.

~o~

Itachi had done research of his own while Nara swore he would now fight to gain the approval to cleanse Sarada of the fiend without a name.

The Japanese adopted customs of performing an exorcism during the Heian Era, which included funeral processions and exorcising any demons and evil spirits from burial grounds. Thus came the use of _ofuda,_ or "talisman with the name of a Kami". The exorcist was known as _fangxiangshi_ in China, but the term here in Japan was _hōsōshi_. Earlier records were dated in 797 in the Shoku Nihongi which included a _hōsōshi_ performing the ritual burial rites for emperors Shōmu in 756, Kōnin in 781, and Kanmu in 806. But unlike the four-eyed bearskin reserved for the Chinese method, there was a four-eyed mask.

Every exorcism was NOT without pain, sometimes risk of one's life. Which was why he began to worry even more...

What WAS that thing? It couldn't be the _amanojaku_ , could it? The wicked deity known for its pervasive ways, peering into a person's heart and seeing their darkest desires...

Who could forget the grisly fairytale of the elderly couple who took in an innocent young girl born from a melon of all things - and ended up a victim of the _amanojaku_ who wore her flayed flesh?

A couple days later, he finally got the call from Nara, and the news was exactly as he wanted to hear: _permission granted._

The date of the ritual was scheduled for three more days, on Friday night - but Shikamaru wouldn't be performing it alone even though he requested it. Someone with more experience would be aiding him.

He was unable to sleep those three nights, but he took sleeping pills to aid until the night finally arrived. Nara was with him as they waited for the man who was going to help them get through all of this as smoothly as possible...except plenty could go wrong. He answered the door when the bell rang, and there stood a man dressed in dark clothing, wearing the signature Buddhist priest garb, and his silvery hair was spiked upwards. A black patch was placed over his right eye, indicating he was half-blinded. "Mr. Uchiha, I presume." His voice was low, grouchy even, as if he didn't like talking too much.

"Yes," Itachi answered.

"Ao from Kiri. I came to help. Is Nara here?"

And just like that, Shikamaru Nara made himself known. The two men greeted each other before the older man started telling him what equipment they needed, and the younger started to explain more about the case. _This is the one who performed an exorcism back in his hometown, and it damned near killed him along with the victim._

~o~

"Sarada" was screaming and cursing limitlessly even as the man arrived. _Gonna end tonight if I have anything to say about it._

Boy, was he glad the extra hand came, but he was also nervous a little, and he shouldn't be. He found himself wearing the same gear as the seasoned man who came across the sea for tonight. Priest Ao - cranky as he was, but also wishing they could have this over with and the girl saved if he had anything to say about it - briefed him on the specifics: avoid any kind of conversation with the afflicted, and only ask what was relevant to the rites, for any demonic being was a liar who enjoyed confusing the would-be heroes.

But they also liked to mix lies with the truth in order to attack. Psychology was the greatest weapon besides physical violence, but he didn't have to tell Shikamaru that.

Itachi was to wait downstairs, but any noises would be heard maybe throughout the entire night if it would take that long. Imagine the mental and emotional pain if he hadn't had enough already.

The steps they took upstairs were slow and deliberate, the colder the air got, and the harsher the profanities got on the other side of that door. When Ao did the honor of opening it, the cries stopped and the frigid air was nothing short of threatening to physically hinder. He gazed upon the wretched thing on the bed and didn't so much as flinch, but he did pull out a tag and slapped it below the one that was already existing - and the girl-monster threw her head back, wailing in agony. Then "Sarada" recovered only to spit at him, and it was that loathsome green goo from her mouth. Shikamaru had to duck behind one of the rear posts to avoid getting a second time.

He pulled himself together so he and Ao could prepare, and that meant putting on both of the four-eyed masks which were part of the custom, and then placing wooden charms on each poster of the bed, ignoring the spews from the demonic child whose eyes rolled far up into her head to show the whites.

"Time to wash and then give it to the afflicted," Ao said.

To keep history short, this practice originated as did its term from the legend of sun goddess Amaterasu and her brother Susano'o, the storm deity. It began one day when the heavenly female herself was weaving in the purified halls until Susano'o entered from the roof with a flayed heavenly horse in tow. This action sparked outrage and resulted in the god's expulsion from the heavens, though Amaterasu remained in power. Thus _harae_ itself came from his removal after such a foul act. This ritual cleansed everything from sins and uncleanliness alike as well as represented regret in the English sense.

Water was used, to rinse your hands and face - but also to douse on the affected. And that was what he had to do: Shikamaru was tasked with throwing the rag over "Sarada's" face and then splash the glass of water, causing "her" to thrash about, while Ao read the sutra text and never stopped for a beat.

Shikamaru had to pause so the pitiful thing could breathe, because sometimes the possessed died from suffocation like this. Though when he did, the girl cursed at him. **"Your father sucks -!"**

He cut it off by throwing the rag over the scarred face and splashing again...and that was when the bed began to _shake at all corners_.

Ao did not stop citing, but Shikamaru struggled to keep up even though he WAS reading the texts. He did stand up from his place with the one-eyed man, shocked at what he was seeing and swore to himself he never saw anything like it. Especially when the bed itself began to raise up by unseen forces - _it's working._

"Call upon the holy name of the Buddha," was all he could manage.

 **"BASTARDS! PIGS!"** the demonic Sarada snarled, lashing out her filthy, serpentine tongue at him more than the one who had the reins in hand. Then she threw herself back down and writhed more, groaning in pain. This was Ao's cue to reach down and hold her head in place as she vomited more green ooze onto the dirtied sheets.

Around them, the closet doors and the window shutters were opening and slamming shut. The cackling of the monster tied down in bed resonated into their ears: **"Shove your prayers up your asses, you worthless pieces of shit!"**

All the while, the IV connected fell down and shattered, the bedroom door itself breaking in half. And this happened when he and the veteran priest continued with the Buddha's prayer: the girl's head _twisted_ all the way around clockwise and then back again.

 **"You left your daddy alone to die, Shika."**

"SHUT UP!"

He would NOT let that thing win. He was going to finish this. His throat was throbbing from the shouting over the forces tearing this room apart piece by piece. Eventually, it reached the bed itself where the possessed had "her" turn. The bindings were torn by an invisible blade, the holy seals ripped off and littered across the floor, and the creature lifted into the air, splayed about and with "her" eyes rolled upwards.

All you had to do was keep screaming that the Buddha expel the monster within; eventually, the victim levitated back down to rest across the mattress...and that was when Shikamaru was ordered to get out one more thing from the priest's bag.

 _Salt...to purify and drive away the wicked spirit._

~o~

He heard everything that was going on upstairs, but he could not interfere no matter how much he wanted to. Kisame urged him to keep calm and have a drink, and he had two which was enough. It wasn't the answer to whatever was happening upstairs.

 _Don't you dare die, Sarada..._

He never once called Izumi to tell her the update, for fear of sparking panic when he wanted her stress-free from this. He was close to picking up the phone now and doing that - when all at once, the doorbell to the house rang. Angrily jumping up and sober enough, he answered the door to see who it was, and he was shocked when _Detective Kakashi Hatake_ stood there. "Detective, at this time of night -!"

"Yeah, I really apologize -" But there was no warmth in his voice. "- but neighbors of yours said they heard disturbances...specifically up in your niece's room, by the looks of it. I would like to come up and check, and I won't take no for an answer."

Cold horror ran up Itachi's spine. That meant the man figured out on his own that Sarada really did play a part in her own father's death, no matter if she didn't remember or not. And that meant if he let him in now, the man would see the acts going on. Headlines were going to be made, and this family would be a target for scrutiny for life. _But I can't just withhold information and be in any more serious trouble._

He and the detective were running up the stairs - and that was when they both heard the wailing and crying. Both men halted in their tracks when they both saw not only the two priests, but _Sarada_ laying there on her bed, still mauled and a little bloody, but otherwise back to herself, if you could count hysterically weeping normal. Shikamaru Nara collapsed to his knees on the right side while Ao looked his way as well as Detective Hatake's, and the policeman figured out what had happened.

"Mr. Uchiha, it's done. She's safe now."

Exhilarated, Itachi ran forward and jumped onto the bed, taking his niece into his arms. She was still crying when she held onto him, sobbing and blubbering at how horrible it was, but that she didn't remember a thing of what had happened.

 _Not even her father._

~o~

She was so happy to be back home. It was a desert, she got to wear a one-shouldered dress to match the sands she stood against for the shoots, but it was also a good time to enjoy the spa there and do a little shopping - and that meant getting a new present for Sarada, which was a new chain for that necklace Itachi got her. But as soon as all of that was done and she got the call from her husband...it was the news she'd waited to hear.

All the fears and worries were gone in an instant, replaced by a burst of happiness that left her crying tears of joy and falling to sleep in her room that night.

Izumi could hardly wait to get home as four more days passed.

There was not only Itachi with that bruise near his eye healing slowly and with a content but weary smile, but also Sarada with bandages in place and a bright smile as if nothing happened. Her eyes lit up when she saw her aunt coming their way after getting out of the cab with her single bag. The three met with a group hug - and then her husband broke her good news.

They were going to get out of this house, no matter it being in his family for generations, because there were too many terrible memories that meant they had to start fresh.

Shikamaru Nara was there, and so was the experienced exorcist named Ao who helped him, and she couldn't ever repay them for saving her family. They even told her Sarada didn't remember a thing, which was for the best.

Detective Hatake also came up to talk to her, to inform her that there would be no murder charges, though the story was too great to be hidden. Except he would do everything in his power to help protect them from the nastiest of critics. "In the meantime, you had better get out of here safely and start your lives over. You deserve it."

Sarada went up then and gave him a kiss on the cheek, which surprised him and made her aunt and uncle laugh as well as the priests. She did the same to Nara and Ao. And then they were going back into their house to start with the packing up as well as the arrangements as to where they would be staying. That also meant explanations to their friends, which made her a little nervous.

Where would they stay until they got a new house of their own, if any were available? Either with Naruto and his family, or perhaps her mother, maybe Shisui. Anyone would suffice.

Hatake was back in his car, the priests in their own ride, leaving the Uchiha family in peace.

 **In Japanese mythology, there is a demon-like monster called the Amanojaku which provokes a person's inner darkness, tricking them to doing evil deeds, and can sometimes kill the person to assume their appearance. But of course I may have done some tweaking here and there. ;)**

 **During the Heian period (794-1185), the Japanese adopted many Tang dynasty (618-907) Chinese customs, including the** _ **fangxiangshi**_ **known as** _ **hōsōshi**_ **(** **方相氏** **)** **)** **who would lead a funeral procession and perform everything that was part of the rites.**

 **Exorcisms are also known as** _ **harae**_ **, as Shikamaru also details when it finally happens. Stem from a myth of Amaterasu and Susano'o. :D**

 **So you have the end. No regrets, no need to change anything, no need to drag on about "what happened afterwards", so please review. :D**


End file.
